Let The Morning Come
by Kurt's Anatomy
Summary: When eleven teenagers escape to their friend's lodge for a winter retreat, things go from bad to worse when a mysterious presence lurks around every corner. Allegiances are severed, new discoveries are made and nobody was ready for what happened at dawn.
1. Oh, These Sour Times

Let The Morning Come

Chapter 1- Oh, These Sour Times

* * *

The snow swirled around the blissful cabin, scattering around like tiny hurricanes before finally settling on the ground like blankets, making the area look even more picturesque. Oblivious to the natural beauty outside, eleven teenagers were having the time of their lives.

Or so they thought.

The music flared obnoxiously as Jess tapped the button on the portable speaker to raise the volume of Miley Cyrus' catchy pop anthem " _We Can't Stop"_. Several of the party groaned, raising their objections about the song choice.

Jess danced her way back into the fray, twisting her hips expertly, dancing with everyone and anyone who would entertain her. Partying was a simple thing. You drank, you danced, you had fun laughing with your friends. People who didn't party puzzled her. She wasn't dumb like most of her friends believed, but she wasn't what anyone would call an empath. Some things just seemed natural and she didn't really get why people would want to sit down at a party.

Matt shrugged, tapping his foot idly. His party experience was always best described as a place to people-watch. He had a rather interesting group of friends who were vastly different in every way and he was always very intrigued to learn how such a diverse bunch had assembled to form the tightest knit friendships Matt had ever witnessed.

Emily huffed loudly. Miley Cyrus was not her idea of a good time. She looked up at her boyfriend, Matt and tried to block out the unwelcome intrusion of another. Emily tried very hard to block out the actual melody of the song and let the background beats surround her in a dull haze. The sooner this song was over, the better. Then she could commandeer the iPod and actually pick a decent music selection which wasn't centered around trashy pop music.

Beth sighed as she watched her sister dancing. Not that she was a bad mover, she was just obvious in her direction. Everyone in the room knew what was going on there and the more Beth had tried to point that out, her sister would clam up and deny everything. It was slightly infuriating. So, instead of dwelling on sibling issues, she decided to have her own fun, fun that didn't involve worrying about her sister or her brother for that matter. Letting the cheesy dance music wash over her, Beth threw her hands up in the air, perhaps over-dancing considering the song choice.

Hannah sighed as she looked around the room. Everyone seemed to be getting exactly what they wanted, bar one or two of them. It wasn't fair. Hannah wanted so badly to just take off her glasses, stick some contact lenses in and be the girl that _he_ wanted her to be. The girl that she wanted to be for _him_. It wasn't a big secret, it was just something that she didn't want to talk about because it made her upset. So she avoided it. She knew that it annoyed her siblings, but that was how it had to be or else Hannah would have no shot at happiness, only misfortune and loneliness.

Chris didn't really mind the music too much. He was more interested in watching another as he had plenty of fun. Chris loved to party, especially with his best buds, but something was off about this particular night. He didn't know what it was, but there was something. Nobody was even paying attention to his doubts, which was definitely a good thing. Chris didn't want to be responsible for ruining the fun. Shrugging to himself, he downed the rest of his beer and threw the cup aside lazily, settling for dancing beside Emily, who glared at him with an unimpressed roll of her eyes.

Ashley _loved_ Miley Cyrus. Secretly, of course, she had an image to maintain. Her public music tastes were more old-school, with The Clash and Led Zeppelin monopolising most of her musical discussion. But in the privacy of her own Spotify playlist, she was allowed to indulge in more of her guilty pleasures. She wasn't going to lie and say that she ignored chart music. It wasn't the _best_ music by any means and some of the artists were incredibly arrogant, but she enjoyed listening to a lot of it. She blamed a select few of her friends for that one.

Josh smiled and nodded to everyone as eye contact was fleetingly made. He was sat down, one of only two to be seated. His red cup grasped tightly in his hand, Josh tried to ignore the fact that everyone was silently judging him for not having enough fun at his own party. Well, he shared the party hosting with his two sisters, but it had been his idea for them to have a weekend long blowout at the family lodge. He glanced up at his friends, just happy that they were enjoying themselves to be too preoccupied with his own sense of fun. The only major obstacle was that he didn't really dance. Not that that was stopping Chris from enjoying himself. Josh tilted his head as an unreadable expression passed over Chris' stony face. He wondered what the issue was there. Probably some more Ashley angst. Figures. Josh thought Ashley was smoking and wished Chris would make a move already so he would have an actual excuse not to ask her out. Though, the more he thought about it, the more he questioned which member of that pair he actually wanted to ask out. Maybe it was both. That was a thing, right? Both?

Sam considered herself the only one besides Jess who was truly enjoying herself. In her group of eleven, she was the one they all went to for advice, unless it was concerning her. Then they went to Ashley, but it was mostly her. She glanced around the room and knew what one thing was stopping each and every one of them from having the most fun they could. For example, Emily wasn't happy in her relationship but was too insecure and nervous to leave it. On the opposite side, Matt could feel his girlfriend slipping away from him but didn't know how to keep her close. Sam had to say, alcohol was not a great solution. It made them all dizzy and unthinking, _unfeeling_. The last party had almost ended in disaster when Josh had tried to play a prank on Jess, who threatened to cut his ears off for scaring her. Josh had ran around the kitchen table trying to make her dizzy but only resulted in falling over himself. It had taken her, Chris and Matt to subdue Jess for long enough to safely remove Josh from the situation after an apology had been expressed.

Kurt sighed as his cup was once again made empty. By his own doing, of course. He downed his double vodka with Red Bull in what felt like four seconds flat, earning a whoop from both Jess and Josh. The two were surprisingly alike, not that the two of them recognised that, of course. Jess maintained that Josh was a moron and Josh maintained that Jess was an airhead. But they were friends, they were all friends. There wasn't one weak link. Except for maybe Emily and Jess, though they'd made a better effort to get along of late. There was also Hannah, who Kurt suspected didn't like him very much, due to their mutual crush. Kurt looked at the guy in question, who winked quickly before Kurt twirled so that his blush wasn't noticed. It also gave him a chance to shake his ass the way his dance lessons had taught him. He caught Emily's eye and she smirked, nodding behind him. _He's watching you_ , she mouthed. Kurt would've considered it creepy if he wasn't excited by the fact that those beautiful light brown eyes were watching _him_. Mixing himself another drink, his usual, Kurt tried to forget about it and have some more fun with his best friends.

Mike, who was sat to Josh's left, groaned at the alcohol hit his head all at once, unrelenting and fierce. He looked at Kurt, who looked to be having the best time ever with a red cup always in his hand. He winked at him, not realising that Hannah's eyes were also on him, rather hungrily. Kurt turned away from him and Mike felt a cold chill run through his body. He wasn't supposed to be appreciating Kurt's ass like this. He was supposed to be looking at Jess and the way her body moved. Guys didn't look at other guys...except for Kurt. Maybe, then, it was okay that he wanted to hold Kurt close to him and not let go...and not in a friend kind of way. He wanted to rub up against Kurt while he was dancing and it seemed as though Kurt wanted to do the same. From the looks he was getting, it seemed that way at least. Maybe something would come at that. Actually, Mike was sure it would...because he was going to make it happen.

As each had a good time in their own ways, Emily was the first to break the silence regarding the music choice.

"Okay! That's it! I've had enough of Miss Hannah Montana screeching down my ears about having a good time. I'm changing the song and I don't care who's bothered by it!"

A few groans of relief mixed with some of reluctant sadness about the song change, as Beyoncé's "Crazy In Love" followed.

"Finally," Kurt crowed above the music, shooting his arms up into the air and grabbing Jess, the pair spinning and strutting in a complex choreography only those two could have designed. Mike chuckled, again not noticing Hannah's lustful looks. Beth sighed, walking over to a now standing Mike. Enough was enough.

"Over here, asshole," she snapped, dragging him over to the kitchen area.

Mike frowned, wondering what had gotten Beth so agitated towards him. He hadn't done anything that he could think of.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Mike gaped. "I don't follow."

"Oh, don't play dense, it doesn't suit you."

Mike grinned. "Maybe I _am_ just dense because I have _no_ idea what you're talking about, Beth."

"Fuck, Mike, I'm talking about _Hannah_! You know, my twin sister, the girl who's been in love with you for six years!"

This was definitely news to Mike. Sure, Hannah was extremely friendly towards him and sometimes made excuses to talk to him about random trivia that nobody really cared for, but that did mean she loved him? Mike didn't think so. There had been no clear signs, or was he just not looking hard enough? He didn't think the latter was the case, however.

"Shit, Beth, I had no idea, I swear." One thing about Mike Munroe was that he was always honest. He told white lies as everybody did, but honesty was written all over his face. Beth could tell.

"Jesus, you really had no idea...so does that mean…"

"What?"

"Hannah isn't the only one in this group who's been crushing on you. But I've already said too much today. I'm sorry for snapping at you, I thought you were being an asshole."

Mike shook his head. "Man, I'm sorry, I should've been paying more attention. She must think I'm a jackass."

"Don't sweat it, dude. In fact, I think Hannah needs to learn a vital lesson from all of this. She attaches herself too quickly and that isn't good."

Mike frowned. "Wait, you said something about someone else in the group?"

But Beth was gone, lost in a haze of drunken dancing people. Mike groaned and resumed his seat. Looking around the room, he tried to deduce who his other mystery admirer was. His gaze quickly running over Hannah, he appraised the room. Head tipping back in his seat, he sighed and realised that he was doing way too much thinking at a party. Fortunately for him, he was saved from this by the arrival of Sam, who offered him a freshly made cup of...something.

"You're definitely not drunk enough," Sam commented as he took a sip.

"JD and Coke," Mike commented approvingly. "You know my drink."

Sam slapped his head playfully. "Duh, Mikey, we've been friends since third grade."

Mike smirked. "Yeah, because I was secretly drinking JD and Coke as a third grader. I'm badass, Sammy, but I'm not a train-wreck."

"You sure about that? Because I _know_ that you've been sat here for the past half hour, not because you're bored, but because you've been watching Kurt and thinking about whether or not you're actually going to make a damn move."

"Jesus, Sam, tell me how you really feel."

Sam shrugged. "I'm just tired of watching you make puppy eyes at someone who is so clearly into you."

"He is, isn't he?" Mike smirked smugly. Sam slapped his arm.

"That's precisely what Kurt doesn't need. You being your simian self. Just be the guy he knows you are and you'll be fine. Dance with him, do a little grinding, you'll find yourself in Josh's bedroom in about five minutes flat."

Mike shook his head. "I can't do that tonight."

"Why, you ran out of Viagra?"

Mike snorted but shook his head again. "Beth told me about Hannah."

"Wait, you didn't know? Wow Mike, I knew you were oblivious, but is a new record. She doesn't exactly make herself subtle."

"Whether I knew or not, I can't just go up to Kurt and kiss him when I know Hannah's going to be watching. It's not fair to her. I probably need to talk to her about it first."

Sam downed her drink and licked her lips. "Okay, that's what you don't do. That'll just upset her."

"You're the one saying I should kiss someone else right in front of her!"

Sam frowned. "Wait…"

Mike rolled his eyes. "What?"

"Han isn't here."

"She's probably in the bathroom or something."

Sam nodded to Kurt, who was busy bumping and grinding with Jess. "Well now's your chance."

Mike rubbed his hands together. "I can't. I'm nervous."

"Dude, you're like the most confident guy I know. And there's no way this could go wrong. Just…do it."

Mike laughed. "I'll talk to him later tonight. We're sharing a room anyway."

Sam's eyes widened in false surprise. "Look how that turned out. Almost as if someone manufactured the sleeping arrangements so that would happen. Almost as if someone _likes you_."

"Alright, you've had your fun. Let's just go and dance, people are starting to stare at us."

"That's Kurt and he's staring at _you_."

Mike got to his feet and led Sam into the fray of dancers. Some remix Mike didn't know the name of was playing from the speakers and everyone was enjoying it. He knocked back his drink, quickly realising that Sam had brought him a double and felt his head start to throb lightly. He was greeted with a familiar pair of hands on his hips.

"You could stand to loosen up a bit more. You know, get your hips into it."

Mike looked at Kurt swayed, shaking his hips the way he knew how to. "And just how drunk are you?"

Kurt shrugged. "Drunk enough that I'm very aware of how close you are."

"Kurt!" Emily called from behind him. He turned around, accepting the shot glass she was holding and knocked back the tequila without a care in the world. Emily and Kurt could go for hours longer than the rest of them. They consumed alcohol like it was water and they rarely got hangovers. Mike was curious and envious of this talent.

"What were you saying?" Kurt smiled as he turned back around.

Mike decided it was now or never. Initiate some kind of move or back down like a total pussy. He could hear Sam's voice yelling at him from her position now over by Ashley and Josh.

"I really want to kiss you right now," Mike mumbled pathetically.

Kurt, not being able to lip read, frowned. "What?"

Over by the music, Matt was swaying dizzily, more drunk than he should have allowed himself to get.

"I really want to kiss you right now." Mike's latest attempt at the truth was drowned out by a spike in the volume.

Kurt shrugged again.

Mike decided to just go for it. He coiled a hand around the back of Kurt's waist and yanked him closer, their lips smashing together like they were made to do it. Cheers and whoops sounded from around them as their kiss deepened. Mike's cup clattered to the floor as his other hand nested itself in Kurt's usually pristine hair. He smirked into the kiss as he pulled a small handful. Kurt's groin pushed up into Mike's own at the action and Mike felt a light nibble on his bottom lip.

Holy. Shit.

This was everything. Why hadn't Mike done this before? He had certainly thought about it, but something had always stopped him. He didn't think Kurt would take him seriously. In fact, he still had doubts about that.

As the kiss broke, nobody but Beth saw Hannah lurking at the top of the stairs, sitting with her body obscured but so her eyes could witness everything that was going on below her. And she was not pleased at all.

Kurt knew how much she liked Mike. Granted, she also knew how much he liked Mike and had done since before she had even thought about boys in a romantic way. She figured that they should have formed some kind of pact not to do anything about it, but Hannah hadn't thought Mike would make a move on either of them. Not because Kurt wasn't desirable, he definitely was, because she hadn't thought that Mike was gay or even had any interest whatsoever in Kurt. Hannah knew that they were quite close friends, possibly the closest in the group besides Sam and Josh and her and Beth, but she didn't think Kurt's interest was reciprocated. She knew that hers wasn't, it was just obvious from all the times Beth had told her to just move on already. Had she known that Mike was into Kurt? Did anyone know? Did Mike even know before tonight?

Either way, this hurt. It would hurt her for Mike to be with anyone, but another member of the group was just too much. They were always together, the eleven of them, it would be painful to see Mike always being coupled up with someone who wasn't her.

There was a lot that Hannah could deal with, but this was her limit. Walking all around the first floor, she slipped down the back stairs and exited the lodge through the storeroom door. The snow hit her directly in the face, but she didn't care. She just needed to walk and she needed to get away from the fun and kisses that were being had in the lodge.

"Hannah!" She heard Beth's voice behind her. She was tempted to stop, but didn't want to face the questions and the obvious eye rolling.

So she ran. Deep into the woods.

Which turned out to be the first mistake of many that would happen over that weekend. The first mistake that would set into motion a sequence of events that would change everything forever.


	2. Everyone's Looking For Something

Chapter 2- Everyone's Looking For Something

* * *

Hannah was just running. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew that she had to run away. Even just for a little while. To get away from everything. Even her sister and brother, the former of who she knew was rapidly chasing after her. Beth would reach her eventually, but Hannah needed time to collect her thoughts.

So she continued to sprint deeper into the snowy woods, her breath spiralling into the air as the cold hit her. She felt a deep burn in her chest, but she tried to ignore it. Her head pounded from running but she knew she needed to go _further_ , the more distance put between her and her life, the better. Hannah wished she could just forget it all, wished that she had never been able to develop romantic feelings for another human person, because all they ever did was disappoint you and choose somebody else.

She was of the opinion that Mike only acknowledged her because they were a group. Mike had been friends with Josh first, and in turn had been introduced to the girls. She reckoned that if they weren't a unit, Mike wouldn't even look at her in the halls at school.

And why would he?

She wasn't special, she wasn't beautiful like Jess or Sam, she wasn't super-smart like her sister or Emily. She had nothing particularly striking going for her, nothing about her couldn't be found in one of the other girls in the group.

Or, apparently, one of the boys.

It was disappointing, because Hannah Washington _adored_ Kurt Hummel.

It had been like that for as long as she could remember. She barely remembered her life without Kurt in it. He was the first guy to tell her that she was beautiful besides her father. And he truly meant it. Just like Mike and Sam, Kurt's opinions were always honest and you could always count on him to tell you the absolute truth, or at least his honest opinion. Hannah had gone to him so many times about everything and he had always set her straight. He had told her that he didn't think she would ever be with Mike, but that just meant he wasn't the right guy for her, no matter how much he might have seemed like it at the time.

Hannah knew he wasn't being malicious or trying to get her out of the way so that he could make a move on Mike, it was just the unfortunate way the situation had played itself out.

Hannah finally stopped running, seeing nothing but snow and trees all around her. She blinked a snowflake out of her eyes as the cold trapped her in its grasp. Her lungs were burning, letting oxygen soak into her body. She turned around and saw nothing, nobody. So maybe she had overreacted earlier. Or maybe she hadn't, her brain wasn't working too clearly at the moment.

She braced herself on a nearby tree and sighed. This was what she wanted.

* * *

Kurt sat on the sofa holding his head. Jess was on the opposite side doing the very same. Everybody else had decided to go out and look for Hannah and Beth, who had been gone for some time now. They had bottles of water which they were furiously gulping down. Kurt's throat burned with the familiar aftertaste of tequila, something that he thought he had gotten used to. Apparently not, considering now his throat felt like someone just stabbed it with an acid-coated blade. Jess shuffled in her seat slightly to face him.

"So…you and Mike, huh?" She wiggled her eyebrows.

Kurt blushed, although momentarily. He regained his composure before answering. "I don't know. It might have been merely a drunken kiss."

"It didn't look like that to me. He was really going in there. I'm half-surprised that you didn't swallow his tongue."

"I don't know where it came from. Honestly."

"What are you so worried about?"

Kurt shrugged. "That the thing I've wanted for so long has finally happened and Mike doesn't feel the same way about it. We didn't talk about it afterwards, so I don't know how he's feeling. People make drunken mistakes all the time, I should know, I've made enough of them."

"Somehow, I don't think that this was a mistake. I saw the determination in his eyes. I saw what it meant to him. He definitely figured something out."

"You're okay with this, right?"

Jess rolled her eyes. "If you think you're going to get away with not being with Mike because you think I have feelings for him, you're mistaken. I'm into someone else."

Kurt was excited. "Who is it? It can't be Chris or Josh. It's not Mike…oh my god. Are you into Matt?"

Jess scoffed. "As if I'd want someone who was into Emily."

"Play nice. So if…wait."

"You're forgetting about the girls, dude."

"Sam?"

Jess blushed. "Nobody else knows. Nobody even knows that I'm bi. I'm going to keep it that way for now. I know you won't say anything to anyone."

"Of course not. If I learned anything from this whole thing, it's that you never really know what people are hiding."

"Way to sound ominous, Kurt."

"Nice word. Did Sam teach it to you?"

"Nice comeback. Did Mike teach it to you?"

"He did. Shortly before he grabbed my ass and stuck his tongue down my throat. Shit, that really did happen didn't it?"

"And not just in a wet dream this time."

Kurt scoffed. "You're a heathen."

"Hey, you're the one grinding on boys and partaking in underage drinking."

"Yeah, like you're sober and wouldn't be sucking face with Sam right now if you had the chance."

Jess clapped a hand on his leg. "Don't think she's into girls, dude."

Kurt shrugged. "I didn't think Mike would be into guys until today. Like I said, you never really know what people are hiding."

Jess looked out of the window. "Do you think Hannah's okay?"

An unsettling feeling swelled in Kurt's stomach. He didn't like how Hannah was feeling, mostly because he k _new_ all too well how Hannah was feeling. It happened years ago, when his first crush on Josh was still ever so strong in his head and heart. And then Josh had kissed some girl who wasn't even in their group. And her name was Patty. Kurt had made up so many cruel rhymes about her that he was deeply ashamed of. But he was a kid, he had learned from his mistakes.

And now _he_ was Patty.

And Hannah was him.

He had wanted to be out there looking for her, but Sam had kindly advised him to start sobering up and that he was probably the last person that Hannah would have wanted to see. She was right, as usual, so he concentrated on trying to keep a clear head. Hannah running away had really sobered him up, something he was immensely glad about.

Kurt didn't know this, but he would need all his wits about him for the night that was about to unfold.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ashley, Chris, Emily, Josh, Matt, Mike and Sam wandered through the forest, scanning their surroundings for any signs of Beth or Hannah. Beth had sprinted off in front of them and they had all followed suit. The more the merrier applied here and they had Kurt and Jess to hold down the fort at the cabin. It was a rather chilly night out and nobody had brought a jacket. Josh wrapped his arm around a shivering Ashley, much to Chris'...well, Chris didn't know how he felt about that. Things were confusing. Feelings were confusing.

"Hannah! Beth!" Sam shouted through her cupped hands.

Emily rolled her eyes. "You seriously think they're going to hear you over the wind?"

Sam spun around, eyes narrowed. "Well it's better than just bumbling along the path hoping to bump into them. If you've got a better plan, Emily, by all means please execute it."

Emily mumbled something that rather sounded like "I'd like to execute _you_ ", which nobody but Matt heard.

"Play nice," he whispered into her ear. She shrugged him off, walking ahead of the group.

"We'll find them," Mike said unhelpfully.

Emily scoffed. "You're the reason she ran off in the first place, Munroe."

Mike held his hands up. "Look, I'm not about to get into that right now. We just need to focus on finding Hannah."

"Have you tried looking down Kurt's throat? Oh, you already did. So we know she isn't there."

Josh shook his head, passing a seriously trembling Ashley along to Chris, who smiled at the gesture. "It would help a lot if everyone would just stop bickering and concentrated on trying to find my sisters. So the path diverges down here, so we can cover more ground by going in groups. Chris, Ashley and I will take the left track and you guys take the right. Whoever finds her, text the group thread and we'll all head back to the cabin. Sound good?"

Nobody wanted to argue with the worried brother, so they all just nodded quietly as they approached the split in the paths. Emily let Matt wrap his arm around her shoulders this time as they surged ahead down the right path, leaving Mike and Sam to bring up the rear.

They parted ways with the other three when Sam turned to Mike.

"Do you regret it?"

Mike's lips tightened instinctively. "I don't think so. It sucks that Hannah saw us, but it was a really great kiss. Like, thinking about all the times I could done that but haven't really fucks me up, Sam."

"Sounds like someone had their Cinderella moment."

Mike nodded seriously. "I think I did. Let's hope I don't lose a shoe or my foot might literally fall off."

Sam smirked. "I'm glad. It's about time you guys hooked up The sexual chemistry has been a lot to handle."

"I don't know if this is just a hook-up, Sam."

Sam blinked, unsure she was hearing correctly. "Wait, so you..."

"I don't know. Maybe. I mean, it's _Kurt_. Who _isn't_ completely obsessed with him? It's Kurt."

Sam conceded that point with a nod. It _was_ Kurt, after all. He had moved to their elementary school halfway through a school year and he had enchanted just about everyone by the end of it. There had been some bullies, but Mike and Matt had seen to it that it ceased. Everybody listened to them and they knew that Kurt Hummel was something special and therefore was off-limits.

Kurt had developed a friendship with their group, but also individual connection with literally all of them, even Emily, who had taken the longest to warm up to him as she did with everybody she met. Kurt saw something in her that the others didn't and perhaps they were more alike than she thought. Kurt brought out the best in them all and their lives weren't the same since he met them.

"You can't just assume that you have feelings for him, Mike. You have to _feel_ it."

"I'm not sure what I feel. I was drawn to Kurt the day I met him and it might be too much to share, but I've been jerking off thinking about him since I first discovered what it was."

Sam pretended to cringe, but straightened immediately. "Yeah, that was too much dude. But Kurt, despite all of his veneers, is extremely fragile when it comes to this stuff. You remember seeing him confess his feelings for Josh way back when and that was a minor childhood crush."

Mike did remember that, and he had also remembered how it had stung him even though he wasn't involved. Kurt and Josh had been inseparable back then. Josh clung to Kurt's every word and Kurt had fallen for him. Kurt decided that enough was enough and told Josh how he felt, not realising that Josh was into Patricia Underwood. Josh had let him down as gently as he knew how, still maintaining that Kurt was the best person he knew, but Kurt had been devastated. He didn't really know how romantic feelings worked outside of movies. He figured that if you liked someone enough, they would like you back, because that was just how it worked, wasn't it?

"You're right. I don't want to hurt him."

Sam noticed Matt and Emily getting a little too far away for comfort, so she ushered Mike along quickly, effectively ending their conversation.

In front of them, Emily was scolding Matt over something they didn't particularly care to concentrate on. As she ranted, Matt quickly turned around to them and mimed a gun going off against his head. Emily didn't notice a thing apart from Sam and Mike chuckling. She narrowed her eyes at them, but they continued to walk straight ahead.

* * *

Ashley watched as Chris and Josh walked ahead of her, easing into their natural banter. She wasn't one to join in as much, although she did partake sometimes. She left the witty comebacks to those two, and Kurt, Sam, and Emily. Jess was slowly rising in the ranks, though, particularly with the assistance of Kurt, who blew each of them out of the water. Sam was the only one who could even compete with him, but her general niceness ruined most of her barbs.

She felt something peculiar in her stomach watching the boys talk. She focused on Chris, the feeling remained as she knew it would. She looked to Josh to calm the sensation, but it stayed. It lingered when she didn't think it would. They always joked about them being a package deal, but Ashley had never thought it would apply like this.

She knew that she loved both of them, but she just didn't know how. She and Chris had been building something stronger gradually over time, but Josh had always been there for her with her problems _about_ Chris, as his best friend. She didn't imagine that Josh felt anything for _her_ , but then again nobody ever really knew how anybody felt about anything in the sanctuary of their own minds.

"Hey, Ash, you okay?"

Josh was smiling at her and she really couldn't help the uneasy feeling that parked in her gut. Chris had stopped too, concerned.

She nodded. "Yeah, just worried about the girls. I hope we find them soon."

The boys nodded and continued to walk, scanning the area for movement.

Ashley didn't feel bad because it wasn't a lie. She was worried about Beth and Hannah, particularly in a bad storm like this. None of them should really be out of the cabin in this weather, but some things just had to be done. Using the 'worried' excuse was easier than delving into whatever it was that was going on in her stomach...and her heart. She knew it wasn't alcohol talking, she knew that something was going on that she would have to confront.

But there were other times, better times, now she had to focus on finding their friends. Before it was too late and before she really started to think about what was going on with her.

Because that was a box that was better left sealed.

* * *

Beth ignored the burning in her lungs as she spotted Hannah leaning against a tree, head in her hands. She sprinted up to her and put a tentative hand on her shoulder.

Hannah's head snapped up. "Jesus, Beth, you scared me."

" _I_ scared _you_? Han, you can't just go running off like that."

Hannah nodded feebly. "I know. I just needed to collect myself."

"That's why we have the panic room. For when you just need to scream it out."

"I really do."

"Then let's do it. There's nobody about. Just scream off this cliff, as loud as you need." Beth knew this would be good for her, Hannah was way too tightly wound.

Hannah turned to the chasm below her, one that she hadn't really realised was there and took a deep breath.

She unleashed an almighty scream into the empty space, one that ripped her lungs apart, sending shockwaves through her throat and chest. Beth was impressed.

"They're here!" A voice yelled through the silence.

Beth turned around and groaned.

Hannah knew that voice anywhere. She had been listening to that voice in her head for years now. And now she wished she couldn't hear it. She didn't want to see Mike right now, it was too much.

Mike and Sam sprinted into the clearing, sighing in relief. Matt and Emily trailed closely behind, smiling.

"It's not safe to be out here, guys, we should go back," Sam said, shooting off a text to the group thread. Several phones beeped.

"I don't really want to be there right now," Hannah said quietly. It was definitely awkward and she couldn't meet Mike's eyes, ones that she knew were boring into her. Usually she would have jumped at the chance to meet his beautiful gaze, but this was different. They would be filled with apologies and pity and Hannah didn't want that right now.

Emily huffed. "It's a shitty situation, but the weather's only going to get worse. You can't stay out here all night."

Beth turned to Hannah. "They're right, Han. You could just go straight to your room when we get back."

Sam tugged on Mike's hand. "Let's walk ahead," she whispered. "See you guys at the cabin."

Mike followed, wishing Hannah would just look at him. He needed to apologise, tell her that he had no idea about her feelings until he had been told and was sorry that he had kissed Kurt in front of her. He had done a shitty done and he had to handle this carefully, to not risk alienating both Hannah _and_ Kurt, which could so easily happen.

Sam and Mike stumbled through the forest, wanting to get back as quickly as possible. The warmth of the cabin seemed so good right about now.

* * *

Kurt placed the back of red solo cups onto the cold floor of the kitchen, heaving a sigh. He was pretty much sober now, but his limbs still ached from walking up to the cabin and dancing and his chest ached from the events of the night. He stretched out his back and grabbed himself another bottle of water, just to be on the safe side.

Picking his head up, Kurt stared out of the window.

He gasped.

A figure stood, also staring at him, from the other side of the glass. Cloaked in shadow, it stood menacingly. He knew the others were out looking for the girls, which meant...

"JESS!" He shouted, whirling around quickly. He slid into the entrance of the kitchen as Jess bounded over to him.

"What, what's going on?"

Kurt turned back around and the figure was gone.

"There was a...something was watching me."

Jess narrowed her eyes. "Are you fucking with me, Hummel? 'Cause it's not funny."

Kurt looked at her solemnly. "I'm not kidding, Jess. Someone was outside, looking in through the window."

"Maybe one of the others is trying to play a prank on us."

"There are a lot of them, we would've heard them. Besides, from the way they came, the outside light should have come on."

"So it's...someone else."

Kurt nodded. "Yes. But who? There's not supposed to be anybody else here this weekend."

Jess smiled grimly. "Looks like we have an intruder."


	3. Semper Paratus

Chapter 3 – Semper Paratus

A sharp bang on the door startled Kurt and Jess.

Despite their initial fears, it was just everybody returning from their rescue mission. Beth and Hannah had returned in tow. Kurt sighed in relief, but was also wary about speaking to Hannah.

He knew he had to pull her aside and talk to her about the whole situation; it was rather him doing it than Mike. Everything was still fragile.

He also had to speak to Mike about what had transpired between them. He needed to know whether the drunk kiss was just that, drunk, or whether it was a spark of something more between them. Mike must have known that Kurt had been in love with him ever since elementary school, he must have. Then again, Mike was fairly oblivious about things regarding himself.

Kurt definitely wasn't confused about his feelings, but he knew that Mike would be. Kurt didn't know if it was just a spur of the moment alcohol-fuelled thing or whether Mike had been thinking about boys (read: Kurt) for a while now. He wasn't sure which outcome was going to come out of tonight, but he desperately hoped for the latter.

He wasn't sure which conversation to have first, he didn't want to alarm Hannah for nothing, but he also didn't want to potentially alienate her if things worked out with Mike.

Luckily, he wouldn't have to choose right this second because Hannah flitted upstairs to her room, Beth following in hot pursuit. The latter turned to Kurt with a sad smile.

"Don't worry about her, Kurt. She'll come around."

Kurt nodded and addressed the others, who were shivering from the deep winter cold.

"What's with the baseball bat, Kurt?" Josh grinned, nodding to the weapon placed by Kurt's side.

Kurt looked deadly serious. "Someone was looking in the window earlier and it scared me. It wasn't one of you guys was it? Playing a joke or something?"

Sam shook her head. "You'd know if it was."

Jess sighed. "Then it means that somebody else is here up at the lodge with us. Someone we did not invite."

Emily snorted. "As long as it's not Rachel Berry, I can cope with it."

Matt, Mike and Chris laughed quietly.

Kurt rolled his eyes fondly. "Even potential psychopaths dress better than her."

The group who had been outside ran to their luggage to get something warmer to wrap up in and assembled around the newly lit fire. Kurt's worries of a serial murderer vanished instantly as soon as Mike sidled up next to him.

Mike prodded his leg awkwardly. "Hey."

Kurt smiled. "Hey yourself. You warm enough in that?"

Kurt gestured to Mike's thin jumper and snow-covered jeans.

He shrugged. "I'm good for now. Although I know where to go if I need warming up." His smirk said it all.

Kurt shrugged. "I mean, Ashley's big blanket is cosy, but I don't think fits two people."

Mike snorted. "You know what I mean."

"I do. Which is why we can't talk about this yet. I need to talk to Hannah first."

Mike nodded. "I thought that might be the case. Well I'll be here whenever you want to talk."

Sam muttered something about going to run a bath. Kurt subtly locked eyes with Jess and smirked. The girl shook her head slowly, eyes narrowed. Kurt knew that glare way too well. It reeked of his own creation. It was his signature look that said _"You're a bitch_ ".

As the conversation swelled, Kurt took that moment to excuse himself, trudging up the snow-beaten staircase. He was not looking forward to this impending conversation, but he knew it was necessary and everyone would feel better afterwards.

He knocked on the door hesitantly, exhaling deeply when the resounding "come in" met his ears.

He poked his head around the door. Beth was nowhere to be seen. Hannah was sat cross-legged on her bed, leaned over a small book which Kurt guessed was her journal. Upon seeing Kurt, she quickly made to stuff it under her bed.

"Can I come in?" He wondered.

Hannah smiled and nodded.

He sat opposite her on her bed and sighed. "Look, Han, I want to say that I'm really sorry."

"You have nothing to apologise for, Kurt," she replied swiftly.

"I know," Kurt muttered. "I just want to apologise on behalf of the situation. It's tough, I know it is. You know I do."

"Patty," she whispered.

Kurt nodded, chuckling. "But I know this is on a bigger scale. We fell for him around the same time, I think. Believe me when I tell you that I had no intention of doing anything with Mike tonight. It took me completely by surprise and I think it did him too.

"I just wanted to come and clear the air and make sure we're still okay. You mean so much to me, Hannah, but I understand if you need some time or some space to process whatever happened tonight."

Hannah shook her head. "Kurt, I've been completely unfair to you tonight. Like you said, we fell for him at the same time and we've been through this together. We always talked about him and shared fantasies about him and I completely overreacted. Running off was dumb, I just need to be a big girl and handle it. If my feelings in any way stopped you from being with him, please don't let them. I'll be fine."

Kurt bit his lip. "Are you sure? I don't know if that's what's going to happen, but I don't want to hurt you at all."

"You won't. Go, go be with your man. I'll be down in a few minutes for the awkward re-integration into the group."

Kurt grinned. "I'll think of a good game we can play to make it easier. Thanks Hannah, for being real cool about all this."

"Are you kidding, thank _you_ , Kurt! I don't know that many people would've had the consideration to come and talk to me, even if you didn't really need to. I appreciate it all the same."

Kurt wished her well and slipped out the door. That had gone...a lot easier than he had expected.

But now it was the hard part.

Making sure that Mike was into him was a risk he didn't think he could take if not for the kiss. It said a lot, but some things were still left up in the air.

When he returned to the group, Mike was missing.

Jess answered his unspoken question. "I think he went to your room."

Kurt nodded. _Perfect_.

"Get it, Kurt!" Emily cheered as he walked away. Kurt took a little bow as he walked across the hall towards the room that he and Mike would be sharing.

 _The room that he and Mike would be sharing._

 _THE ROOM THAT HE AND MIKE WOULD BE SHARING!_

Kurt's heart hammered in his chest as he thought about the expectations for that night. Was he ready for _that_? He didn't think so. He shook his head to clear it as he turned the doorknob slowly.

Pushing the door open, he stepped inside.

Once Kurt was inside, he gasped at what he saw.

Mike Munroe, the object of his affections, was naked. From head to toe.

"Kurt!" Mike shrieked, grasping his towel and placing it in front of his crotch.

Kurt chuckled. "Getting a little head of ourselves are we?"

Mike grinned, flashing his teeth. "I was just about to take a shower. I guess I should thank you for getting the only room with an en-suite bathroom."

"I do what I can. I guess right now isn't the best time to talk."

Mike sat on his bed. "I can hold off for a few minutes. For you."

Kurt smirked. "Well, I can't. _Get. Dressed._ " Kurt's tongue swiped across his lips when Mike fiddled with his clothes. He slipped on his underwear under the towel and looked to Kurt.

"Better?"

"I guess."

"I can't believe you haven't seen me naked before. We had Gym together our whole lives."

Kurt shook his head. "Well, I don't peek, Michael. Although if I'd have known how tonight was going to pan out, I'd have peeked years ago."

Kurt sat on the other bed opposite Mike, just as he had done with Hannah and smiled. "So where does this leave us?"

Mike gaped. "Right in there with the tough questions, aren't you?"

"I like to be straight to the point."

"Nothing about this is straight, Kurt," Mike joked. It definitely did take the edge off of a conversation like this to have Mike joking about it. It definitely did Kurt a favour and he was thankful for the levity.

"Then answer me this. What is _this_ exactly? I'm pretty sure you know where I stand now, so this is pretty much all on you and what you want to do. No pressure."

Mike sighed. "Kurt, I'm pretty much the most oblivious person you'll ever meet. I had no idea Hannah liked me like that until Beth told me a few hours ago."

"But Hannah was even more obvious than _I_ was. And I offered to give you a full body massage."

"Wouldn't say no to that now," Mike winked. "Seriously though, I have no idea when people are into me.

"What I do know is that earlier was the best kiss I've ever had."

Kurt pouted. "It could be alcohol talking, though."

Mike shrugged. "Well, how about we test it out now that we're both pretty much sober?"

Kurt looked away for just a second. "I suppose I wouldn't be averse to that."

Mike beckoned him closer. "Let's see if JD really does rule my life."

As soon as he was in touching distance, Mike grasped Kurt and pulled him thrush against him. His lips met Kurt's chin before he dragged him up to Kurt's own lips, connecting the two firmly.

Mike leaned back on the bed, Kurt falling against him. Kurt instinctively spread his legs, so he was straddling Mike.

Kurt moaned into the kiss and his hands wandered up to Mike's hair, giving it an experimental tug. Judging from the resounding groan that slipped from Mike's throat, Kurt assumed he liked it.

Kurt reluctantly broke the kiss. "So?"

Mike ran his tongue along his lips. "Not bad."

Kurt smirked. "Judging by the thing that's currently digging into my leg, I'm not sure you know what 'not bad' means."

Mike laughed. "Fine, maybe it was amazing."

"That's better."

Kurt rolled off Mike's hard body, lying next to him. "We still need to talk."

"I thought we made some excellent points already."

"I'm serious. I have a question."

"I'm all ears."

Kurt smiled. "What made you come and kiss me earlier? You could've kissed anyone else in that room, boy or girl. Why me?"

Mike turned to him, leaning on his elbow. He reached out and fixed Kurt's hair back into its prior place. "Because...you're the most amazing and interesting person I've ever met. And you look beautiful when you're happy. You look beautiful all the time, really.

"Look Kurt, like I told Sam tonight, I've been jerking off thinking about you since I first learned what it was. I didn't think anything of it at the time and just assumed it was because of how comfortable we've always been with each other. But then I started actually _thinking_ about it. And how it made me feel.

"And I can't think about anything else."

Kurt pressed his lips gently to Mike's hand. "Good answer. I feel it fitting to tell you that I've been in love with you for years now. You say you didn't know, so I can level the playing field."

Mike breathed unevenly. "Love, huh?"

Kurt's eyes widened. "I don't want you to feel like you have to feel those feelings. Okay, I'm going to lay out some options right now.

"One: we boil this down to alcohol and adrenaline and call it off before it gets complicated."

"I don't want—."

Kurt held up his hand patiently. "Let me finish for a second.

"Two: once we get back from the lodge, we can go on a date. See how it goes, see how we feel. Just because I have feelings for you doesn't mean we're going to work out romantically.

"Is there a third?"

Kurt shook his head. "I was just making it up as I went along, I thought I'd think of more solutions."

Mike chuckled. "Well I'd like to choose option two. I want to take you out. I know I definitely feel something for you, Kurt. Nobody is that good at kissing, there's a connection here. So I want to explore that. If it works out, great, if it doesn't, then we tried our best and we'll remain the awesome best friends we've always been. Nothing has to change."

"Do you think we could survive that? Crashing and burning and pretending like nothing happened?"

Mike shrugged. "I think we could. Failed romance doesn't erase our platonic history, Kurt. But I have a feeling everything's going to work out just the way we want it to." Mike kissed Kurt's mouth squarely. "I should take that shower."

Kurt pressed a hand to Mike's chest. "Yeah...you should. I should get back."

Mike grabbed his things and slipped into the bathroom as Kurt left for the main living room again.

When he got there, everybody was in a dither.

"What's going on?"

Sam turned to him, aghast. "We can't find Beth."


	4. Search Parties

Chapter 4- Search Parties

* * *

Kurt frowned. "What do you mean, you can't find Beth? She was with Hannah, right?"

Hannah stepped forward at the mention of her name and shook her head. "She went to our bathroom down the hall and nobody's seen her since."

"And she's not answering her phone," Matt piped up, concerned.

Emily let out a yawn.

Josh sighed. "Can you not?"

"Well, I'm sorry for not signing up to the missing person's investigation squad because nobody's seen Beth for ten minutes."

"You could just have a little more consideration, Em," Chris replied.

Emily turned on him, but Kurt knew that look in her eye. He had to put a stop to this.

"Okay, everyone shut up," Kurt said firmly. Everyone stopped and listened. Kurt rarely ever raised his voice and he _never_ yelled. He always maintained that yelling would ruin his singing voice and that simply could not happen. "Here's what we're going to do. We search every room in the cabin for Beth. We text her and call her at regular intervals to see if she picks up. We _don't_ panic. She couldn't have gotten far and she's smart enough to know not to leave the cabin in this weather."

Ashley raised her hand.

Kurt chuckled. "Yes, Ashley?"

"What if...I'm not panicking...but what if that guy took her?"

Kurt's conversation with Mike had somewhat distracted him from the figure that he had seen in the kitchen not too long ago. How could he have been so stupid?

"Okay, that's a genuine concern. But she would've screamed. Check any open entrances or exits. If she's nowhere to be found, then I don't know what to do."

"We go and look for her," Jess nodded bravely.

Emily stared. "In this snowstorm? You want to take that chance?"

Jess folded her arms tightly. "If you went missing, don't you think you'd want someone to go and look for you."

Kurt winced, as he knew Emily's reply before she had even said it.

"If I was stupid enough to let myself get captured and taken in a _blizzard_ , I'd deserve it."

Hannah clenched her jaw and huffed. "You're sick."

"No, I'm smart and resourceful, there's a difference. Kurt agrees with me."

Kurt sighed.

"Kurt?" Josh questioned quietly.

Kurt shook his head. "I don't completely agree, but I understand Emily's thinking. Beth wouldn't want someone else risking their lives to go and find her if she is even missing at all. If she turns up in ten minutes completely fine and someone's out there lost in the snowstorm, that's another person we've got to go and find. It becomes a cycle. The best thing to do, and I hate saying this, right now is to do nothing. We'll look around and then we wait. It's the right thing to do."

Sam and Josh nodded slowly. Hannah let her arms relax. Chris and Ashley looked at each other pensively. Jess leaned against the wall.

"So we're agreed?"

The group nodded.

"Mike's in the shower, so we should split up into pairs."

Sam did a quick head count. "There's nine of us."

Kurt checked her math and nodded. "I'll go by myself to the basement. Matt and Chris, you guys take upstairs. Sam and Jess, have a look around downstairs. Hannah, Josh, Emily, Ashley, you guys stay on phone duty."

Emily frowned. "It doesn't take four people to dial a number."

Josh nodded. "I'll go with Kurt to the basement. I know the way around. Send word if you see something."

Everyone nodded.

* * *

As the groups dispersed, the phone duty group took seats around the fire.

"I feel so useless sitting here while my sister is god knows where," Hannah lamented, thumbs tapping across her phone.

Emily crossed her legs, relaxed. "Relax, Han, she'll be fine. How many winters have you guys spent up here?"

Hannah looked pensive. "None with a crazy psycho roaming the property."

Emily chuckled. "Point taken."

Ashley pulled her phone away from her ear and grunted. "It's ringing, but no answer."

"We should call every couple of minutes in case her battery dies from all the calling," Hannah suggested wisely.

The other girls nodded as they placed their phones on their laps and sat somewhat awkwardly. The individual relationships between the three girls weren't the strongest in the group. Ashley and Hannah were cordial with everybody, but Emily tended to cause conflict, so they weren't as compatible with her as with the rest of them.

Ashley took a deep breath. "Can I ask you girls something?"

They nodded. For once, Emily didn't look bored.

"How do you know if you're ready to..."

Emily gaped. "Are you gonna fuck someone?"

Ashley's eyes bulged. "No! No, no. Well, maybe soon I don't know. But I don't know if I'm ready to tell someone how I feel."

Hannah smiled. "Well, don't wait too long, otherwise you'll watch him making out with someone else."

"Smooth, Han," Emily rolled her eyes. "Put it this way, Ash. Do you have feelings that are so strong you think you might not survive them?"

She paused, then nodded.

"Every time you see them, do you have fantasies about taking them by the shoulders and confessing everything to them?"

Another nod.

"Then you're ready. No matter what the consequences are, it's not good holding in so many feelings like that. And you're hot, they're bound to respond well."

Ashley blinked in surprise. She didn't know Emily was capable of such emotional openness.

"Surprising, right? I'm not a monster, you know. I'm just not as open about my emotions as the rest of you."

The girls picked up their phones and texted and called Beth once more in relative silence.

* * *

Matt and Chris peeked behind doors along a hallway and sighed when there was no sign of Beth.

"Where do you think she is?"

Matt looked up. "I don't know, man. She's gotta be somewhere though, right?"

Chris grinned. "Well, everyone's somewhere, Matty."

Matt punched his arm. "You know what I mean."

"We'll find her."

"Crazy night already, huh?"

Chris smiled. "You mean Kurt and Mike? Or taking a trip into the blizzard to find the girls?"

Matt shrugged. "Both, I guess. Although Kurt's been into Mike ever since he got here, it's not too much of a surprise that they hooked up."

"I never knew Mikey was into him," Chris admitted.

"I didn't know for sure, but something about how Mike was around him, it just made sense."

"I guess this is the first time our school has had a gay class president," Chris chuckled.

Matt shook his head. "Mike isn't gay, Chris. Actually, I think Kurt's the only guy he's ever even looked at that way. I don't think even he knows what's going on."

Something about that struck Chris particularly deeply. That was a concept he had been thinking about for a while. He had done his research about the modern era, he knew the terms and the definitions, but he wasn't sure how to apply them to himself.

If he was being honest, Chris Hartley was very much into women. He had been since he could even remember being into people. Back then, he hadn't known any other alternatives. But Chris was also into guys, or so he thought. At least _one_ guy, anyway. His best friend, Josh Washington. They had been inseparable since they first became friends, back before their little group was formed. Josh was his _person_ since his family relationships weren't really intact, his friends meant everything to him and Josh even more so. Chris knew that he had been crushing on Ashley lately, but his feelings for Josh were ever-present, something that he couldn't control, something that he had never seen coming. He and Josh had shared the same bed on many occasions and never had Chris suspected something might have been lingering inside of him all this time. Only looking at Josh tonight, his arm around Ashley, stirred up some feelings he wasn't sure he wanted to deal with right now.

He knew he needed to speak to Kurt, or maybe even Mike now. Mike would probably understand his situation better than Kurt, but Kurt gave better, more honest advice. Maybe he would sit down with the both of them at some time and talk it out.

Maybe he could get between them in their room, while they made out and just watch, or maybe even join in and... _focus, Hartley!_

"You okay, man?" Matt frowned, waving his hand in front of Chris' blank face.

Chris snapped back to reality and out of his stupor. "Yeah, yeah I'm good. Just spaced. Thinking about where Beth could have gone."

Matt nodded passively, unsure as to the veracity of that particular statement.

Matt knew that he was the quietest, most passive member of their group, maybe with the exception of Hannah, but that didn't mean that he didn't _see_ things. In fact, it meant that he saw more than people thought he did. When you spend time listening and observing, you pick on things.

He knew that there was something on Chris' mind, but he also knew better than to ask Chris outright. In his experience, if Chris wanted to talk then he would in his own time.

"We've checked every hall upstairs, right?" Matt bit his lip.

"I think so. We'll have to double back anyway to get downstairs. Let's hope someone else had more luck than us."

* * *

Sam and Jess flicked on their phone flashlights as they searched the downstairs area of the cabin. It wasn't so big, or so they thought. It turned out that every door led to three more doors, rooms the girls didn't even know existed. The exterior of the cabin didn't give any sort of indication that there would be this much space inside it.

"I'm worried about her," Jess breathed as they turned a corner, no luck being had.

Sam nodded. "She'll be okay though. Beth is pretty resourceful."

Jess shook her head. "You guys didn't see how freaked out Kurt was about the intruder. I didn't whoever it was, but I know Kurt, and for him to be so scared of something, it's not messing around."

"Whatever happens, we have to keep our heads. Okay?"

Jess, knowing full well that she would go along with whatever Sam suggested, agreed.

"I'm not going to pretend like I'm not scared, but I know that we have to be brave for Beth's sake."

"I don't know how you do it," Jess replied coolly. Jess offered her trembling beam of light as an example. "I just can't control how scared I feel."

Sam smiled, taking her hand. "Listen to me." Jess' heart started to hammer in her chest at the softness of Sam's skin. "You're so much braver than you think you are. Bravery isn't about not being scared. It's about being scared and doing what's right anyway. You're here, doing something that scares you. _That's_ brave. So don't think for a second that you're not being brave and strong by doing this. Okay?"

Jess nodded. "Thank you. I just...I just hope we find her."

"We will."

As Sam turned to double back, she stopped in her tracks. "Do you hear that?"

As Jess listened more closely, she did in fact hear what Sam was referring to.

It was a scream. Coming from down in the basement.

"Kurt and Josh!" Sam snapped, grabbing Jess' hand and heading for the basement.

* * *

Kurt backed up against the wall. "Get the _fuck_ away from me," he spat.

The figure advanced, a knife by their side.

"I'm trained in Krav Maga," Kurt explained. "This won't end well for you." He was hoping the tremble in his voice didn't completely give him away. He wasn't lying, but this person had a knife. He wasn't sure of his reflexes where that was concerned.

The figure shrugged and stepped ever close.

Kurt held up his palms, ready to try and fight his way out.

"Okay, okay, don't hurt me!"

Kurt dropped his palms and gaped. " _Josh_?"

Josh ripped off the mask he was wearing and grinned. "Scared?"

"You idiot," Kurt snapped. "I could've seriously hurt you."

Josh smirked. "Worth it to see that look on your face. Did you trip over something?"

Kurt nodded behind Josh. "I stepped on that stupid baseball helmet."

Josh picked it up. "This was my first helmet from when I was a kid. I wasn't really into baseball, but I pretended to like it. My dad was finally making an effort, you know?"

"So much for that," Josh added, tossing the helmet into the shadows.

Kurt huffed. "Now that we aren't _distracted_ , we can continue searching."

Josh shook his head. "We're back where we started. We obviously can't search behind the locked doors and we've been everywhere that we can."

Kurt nodded. "Well, then, we should head back upstairs."

Josh reached out and held Kurt's arm. "Not so quick. I wanted to talk to you for a second."

Kurt smiled. "Let me guess. About Mike?"

"I forget how well you know me."

"Like the back of my hand," Kurt reminded him, as they slapped the back of their hands together, something they had come up with years ago.

"I know you've dreamed about this since you guys first met, but did you at least talk about it? Is Mike in this as much as you are?"

Kurt smiled. "Careful, Josh. I might confuse your questions for you caring about me."

Josh was completely serious. "I _do_ care about you. That's why I'm asking. I don't want this to end badly. I like Mike. I wouldn't want to have to kill him."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure you'd win that one, bud."

Josh flexed with a grin. "I could take him."

"If you say so. Besides, if Mike hurts me, I'm more than capable of taking him down myself."

"Oh, like you would."

Kurt puffed his chest. "I have enough self-respect to deal damage to whomever tries to hurt me."

"But let's just say...in case any rogue baseball helmets get in the way...you couldn't. I got your back, Kurt. Always."

Kurt squeezed Josh's hands. "You ever wonder what it would be like if Patty Underwood had never been in the picture?"

Josh raised an eyebrow. "You mean Fatty Underpants?"

Kurt gaped, blushing. "I feel terrible about that nickname. I was ten, I didn't know better."

"Yes, we know how mature you are now Kurt. But I do, actually. I'm sure I'm not the only person who's wondered what it would be like to be with you. I think we're too close for that."

"You're right. Ever since you flashed me last year, I haven't been able to recover."

Josh smiled toothily. "You loved every second of it."

Kurt said nothing.

"Speaking of wondering what things would be like, I'm considering doing something really bold."

"You're finally going to stop dressing in flannel! I'm so happy this day has come."

"No, I...never mind."

Kurt stopped smiling. "Hey, no, I'm sorry. I was just playing. You can talk to me about it."

Josh shook his head. "Nah, I can't. Maybe later. If I haven't already done it."

"Is this going to be one of the things where you ask for advice and then don't take any and do the thing anyway, knowing I'd probably tell you not to."

"No, I think you'd encourage this. It might work in my favour."

"I guess I'll take your word for it?" Kurt surmised.

Their phones buzzed in unison.

 _Em: Found Beth. Come quick._

Kurt and Josh exchanged a look before dashing up the stairs to the ground floor.

* * *

They emerged in the living room where everyone, including a freshly-showered Mike, was gathered, standing in a semi-circle around Beth.

Hannah stepped forward. "Beth?"

Beth was trembling. "I need everyone to take a seat in the living room."

Sam frowned. "What's going on?"

"Just do it!" Beth shrieked. "Please," she added softly.

Everyone took seats around the living room, Beth standing up around the eight seated teenagers.

"We're going to play a game. Okay?"

Kurt and Mike shared a confused look.

"A game?" Jess spoke softly. "What game?"

Beth shrugged. "It's more of a...discussion. But I need your completely co-operation. Guys, just trust me on this. I _need_ you guys to play with me."

Kurt had a bad feeling about what was happening as he saw a shadow pass across the front door. The look he exchanged with Matt told him that the other boy had seen it too.

Matt shook his head, blinking, and returned his attention to Beth.

"The oldest game in the book," Beth smiled weakly.

Everyone unconsciously leaned forward in their seats.

Beth exhaled deeply. "Truth. Or Dare."


	5. The Game

Chapter 5- The Game

* * *

Emily scoffed as Beth revealed the game. "Do we look like we're twelve again, Beth?"

Sam shrugged. "I don't know...it could be kind of fun."

Everyone else silently agreed, causing Emily to fold her arms and lean back in her chair.

Beth clapped her hands together. "Perfect. Okay...uh...I'll just go and put on some background music."

As Beth wandered over to the laptop and the speaker system, the remaining eight shared looks with each other.

"She's acting weird, right? That's not just me?"

Kurt nodded. "Something's off. Where did you guys find her?"

Hannah pursed her lips. "Nobody found her, she came in through the front door, shivering, insisting that we get everyone together."

Kurt's eyes flickered around the room. "I'm going to go talk to her."

Kurt stood up before anyone could object and Beth turned around.

"Oh Kurt, please stay in your seat."

Kurt frowned, slowly retaking his seat. "So, she sounds like a pill-popping flight attendant."

Ashley looked worried. "I'm not so sure we should be playing this game, you guys."

As Beth rejoined them in the living room, a deathly silence fell over the space.

The lights snapped off, the fire the only source of light that wasn't coming from the windows.

Everybody squeezed together, scared. Beth looked around nervously.

"You guys, it's fine! I'll put my phone in the middle of the circle and we can keep playing."

A crackling sound came from the speaker system.

"Hello," a disembodied voice rang out. It was deep and unidentifiable.

Kurt slid his hand closer to Mike, as the taller boy grasped it with a squeeze.

"I got you," Mike whispered.

"Not to sound like too much of a copycat, but we're going to be playing a game today," the voice continued.

The group looked around the room, then to Beth, who was shaking vigorously.

"What's going on?" Sam wondered aloud. The obvious question on everybody's minds.

"Good question, Sam," the voice responded eerily.

Kurt gasped. "Whoever this is has a live feed." He glared at Beth. "What did you do?"

Beth wouldn't meet his eyes.

The voice continued. "Astute as always, Kurt. But don't blame poor Beth for this. It's what you've all done that got you here. Each and every one of you is a bad person. And I think you all should know a little bit more about each other."

Josh clenched his jaw. "Whoever this is clearly wants to tear this group apart. We have to stay united and not let this fucking psycho get to us. Agreed?"

Everyone nodded.

"Good idea, Josh. Really, it is," the voice said, louder this time. "But I'm afraid you're not going to be so quick to enjoy other's company when you've all played a round of my game."

Kurt swallowed heavily. "And what if we were to get up and leave?"

"Well," the voice chuckled. "I guess I can't _really_ stop you. But all I would have to do is press a little button and Beth dies."

Emily actually laughed. "You're bluffing."

The voice growled. "Care to try me?"

Nobody moved.

"I didn't think so." It was the voice's turn to laugh now, crackling and intermittent.

Beth stood rigid on the spot, eyes wide. Clearly she hadn't been informed of this development.

Hannah's hands covered her mouth. Matt placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.

"Fine," Mike piped up. "We'll play your dumb game. Just leave Beth _alone_."

"Deal. Each of you plays just one round and Beth gets to go free."

Everyone settled in their seats, it was clear the game was about to begin.

"Don't worry, Beth, we won't let anything happen to you," Sam said, impassioned.

"Sam," the voice spoke quickly. "I guess you can go _first_."

Sam took a deep breath, but steeled herself. Kurt was impressed at her calmness in the face of something that was actually pretty terrifying. "Go for it."

The voice chuckled devilishly once more. "Truth or Dare, Sam?"

"Truth," she replied firmly.

The voice snickered. "Okay...let's see...If you were on a sinking ship and you only had ten lifeboats, whom would you let drown and give your reasons. And you can't say yourself. And none of that 'I'm only choosing you because I know you won't care' bullshit, either. Speak from the heart, Sam. I'll know if you don't."

Sam frowned, breathing hard. She looked around the room at her very best friends, knowing that whomever she picked would take it extremely personally. It was in fact a horrible thing to have to choose. And they were only just getting started.

"Uh...I don't know. I wouldn't want to be the person who makes that decision."

"Well, you have to," the voice responded darkly.

"I know, just let me _think_."

Only seconds went by, but it felt like hours for Sam. It crossed her mind that the person she picked might be first in line for any potential surprises the psycho might have thrown their way throughout the course of the night.

It was against her very nature to do something like this. She wanted everyone to be happy, and nobody to feel less than or insecure. This was one of her worst nightmares.

Almost like the psycho _knew_ that she would hate it.

"I need a name, Samantha," the voice teased. A ticking clock sound effect played over the speaker system. "Beth's life depends on your answer."

As the ticking grew louder, Sam squeezed her eyes shut, knowing that she had made her choice, but it still wasn't easy to say it.

"Matt."

The room went still.

They knew that she _had_ to pick someone, but the reality of her actually doing it was so much worse.

Matt sat there, quietly as always, nodding firmly, jaw clenched. "That's okay, Sam."

"Matt, I..."

Matt forced his best fake smile. "It's _okay_ , Sam. You had to pick. I wouldn't want to have been in your position either."

Jess put her arm around Sam, holding her close.

The Psycho's booming laughter reverberated throughout the space. "That's wonderful, wonderful work. Thank you for your candour, Samantha. I guess Matthew shall go next. Matthew Taylor, truth...or _dare_?"

Matt shook his head lightly, concentrating on his breathing. Emily rubbed his thigh comfortingly. He definitely didn't want to hurt someone's feelings like Sam had done, though he couldn't imagine what The Psycho would have planned for him if he chose the converse.

He weighed the options quickly in his mind.

Truths _hurt_. Like he had just witnessed. He wasn't going to kid himself into thinking that Sam's answer hadn't struck a nerve with him. He had always felt like somewhat of an outsider; hence he joined the football and basketball teams. Even in his tightly knit friendship group, he still felt like an odd one out, only tethered to the group because he was dating Emily. He didn't want to have to confront a harsh truth like that. But then again, truths could be dealt with in the future. Apologies and explanations could patch those wounds up. He didn't want to think about the sorts of wounds he might have to inflict if he chose Dare.

Dares were not fun. Even the childish ones they had played that involved petty theft, streaking, or kissing someone else in the circle. They were often cruel, and they were _always_ childish. They didn't make sense to Matt. But in the hands of a psychopath like the one who was likely observing them, dares could be deadly. Matt wasn't a violent person.

At the end of the day, he would much rather offend somebody than chop off a body part.

So he made his choice.

"Truth," he replied, steel in his voice that shocked him. At least he didn't sound as nervous as he felt.

The Psycho sniggered. "I was hoping you would choose Truth, Matthew. I had the perfect question all picked out."

Matt's heart sank. He had chosen wrong.

The lights flickered on and off.

"Matt. I want you to stand up for this one, next to Beth."

Matt, with trembling legs, got to his feet and joined Beth at the front of the room.

"Good...now, I want you to tell everyone the story of how you and Emily got together."

Matt frowned. "Is that the whole truth I have to tell?"

The Psycho laughed. "Nice try. But this is just a mere Prologue. Now tell the story."

Matt stuffed his hands in his pockets and faced the room. "You all know this story, it's pretty simple. Emily called me up after football practice one day and asked if I wanted to go to dinner that weekend, on a date. We went...to dinner, and we got together from there. Why did I need to tell that story?"

"It's important Matthew, don't worry. Now, where were you when Emily called you?"

Matt had a sudden realisation about what was happening. He hoped the sweat on his forehead wasn't obvious to everyone. Luckily the lighting was dark. "I was on the bus, coming home from football practice."

"That's right! And what were you doing?"

"I was...listening to music."

"And?"

"And...I don't know, texting, I think."

"Texting, yes, you were texting. Actually, no, that's a lie. You were _about_ to text someone."

Emily clenched her jaw, glaring hard at Matt. She had apparently jumped to the correct conclusion.

Matt pursed his lips. "I'm not doing this."

Beth looked worried, but The Psycho just laughed.

"I can understand why this would be difficult for someone as shy as you, Matt. But the group deserves to know, don't you think?"

"I don't see why it's important," Matt shot back bravely.

Emily shrugged. "I'd quite like to hear it."

"Em!" Kurt hissed. "Really?"

The Psycho took control of the conversation once again. "I'll set you up, Matthew, all you have to do is serve the punchline."

"I'm not laughing," Matt muttered.

"Alright. So, everyone, our dear friend Matthew Taylor was in the middle of drafting a text message asking someone out on a date. Someone who decidedly _wasn't_ Emily."

The same silence following Sam's question had fallen over the room again. Everyone's heart were pounding, just waiting to hear the next name that fell from Matt's lips.

"Who were you writing to, Matthew?"

Matt fidgeted, trying to meet everyone's eyes before settling on staring at the ground. He definitely didn't want to look at Emily right now. He knew the exact type of look that would be on her face and he knew that he didn't like it. Not one bit, especially not when he had actually done something _wrong_. Well, it wasn't necessarily wrong, but he hadn't been forthcoming with her, which was bad in Emily's book. She _loved_ and valued honesty no matter what happened afterwards. As long as you were honest, you were good in her book.

"I was...I was writing to...um..."

Everyone inhaled.

"I was writing to Sam."

As the silence dragged on for an uncomfortably long time, Sam looked down, blushing.

"You can sit down now, Matthew, although I think you should find a different seat."

Chris stood up and sat next to Emily, while Matt gratefully took his seat in between Josh and Ashley.

Emily didn't look mad though. She was blank-faced, until a smile took over her face and she let out a raucous laughter.

"Oh that's _priceless_ ," she gasped between guffaws. "Matt had a crush on Sam, and she just left him to drown!"

She continued to laugh, hearing little chuckles coming from The Psycho.

After a few moments, the shock faded away and so did her laughter.

"Actually...that's not funny...not at all, really," she muttered soberly. Chris put on a hand on her arm.

The Psycho cleared their throat. "Let's keep this shame spiral going, shall we? I guess it's Emily's turn."

Emily growled. "I think you've already caused enough damage, don't you?"

"On the contrary, you've only played two out of the ten rounds required to save poor Beth's life. Life is going to be so much different when you finish the game. So, Emily Davis...Truth or Dare, bitch?"

Emily smiled grimly. "Guess I'll be the one to do it," she muttered.

It wasn't a hard choice for Emily. Usually.

Truth was something she often engaged with, a game she played every second of the day. It wouldn't matter what she said during a round of Truth, so that would surely be the obvious pick.

But right now, as the Psycho had probably planned, she was angry. Angry enough that she wanted to see someone suffer, she wanted to see someone hurt as much as she was hurting on the inside.

Sam had always been everyone's first choice for everything. She was beautiful, intelligent, athletic, all things Emily was too, but she was a nice person whom everybody valued highly. Emily valued herself and she knew others did too, but people liked genuinely kind people and that was not Emily. She didn't want to be that person, either, but she sometimes wished people thought of her as highly as they thought of Sam.

And if she had called Matt maybe two minutes later than she had, she might not be dating him at all.

She might've lost him to _Sam_.

She genuinely loved Sam, but she was also Emily's major weakness, where her irrational jealousy kicked in.

So someone would pay. She knew that much. And, in that moment, she didn't mind. She was too fuelled by rage and adrenaline and her own emotions threatening to bubble their way up to the surface.

"I'll choose Dare, Mr. Psychopath!" she bellowed up to the ceiling.

The Psycho cleared their throat and chuckled. "I'm glad someone had the balls to pick Dare. Beth, please give Emily the knife."

 _Knife_? Emily thought.

Kurt felt Mike's hand tense in his own.

Ashley gasped and bit her lip. Matt gave her a reassuring pat on the knee.

Beth quietly stepped forward and handed Emily a knife, a tear running down her face.

"Emily. I want you to..."

"No. Wait, I'll choose Truth. This is not how I thought it would go."

"Too late," The Psycho drawled. "You made your choice and now you have to see it through."

Emily gulped as she gripped the knife tightly in her hand.

"This is about to escalate really quickly, everyone," The Psycho warned gleefully. "Emily, I want you to walk over to Ashley and roll up her sleeve."

Ashley's eyes widened, her mouth falling open.

Beth's eyes flickered around the room, but she was glued to the spot.

Emily rolled the knife in her hand, shaking her head.

Ashley looked to Josh next to her, whose fists were clenched, and then to Chris, who was looking at her with hope in his eyes, and then to Kurt, who always got her through rough times. She knew her was rooting for her. "Do it, Em!" Ashley barked across the room. "You have to, for Beth."

Emily steeled herself and walked across the room. Her arm hovered over Ashley's sleeve before she pulled it up, looking the other girl in the eye.

"Good, very good. This is exciting, isn't it? Now I want you to take the knife...and carve the word 'FREAK' in capital letters across her forearm."

A buzz erupted within the room.

"What the _fuck_ is going on?" Jess spat to nobody in particular.

"This is so fucked up," Mike whispered to Kurt, who nodded and rubbed his arm. Kurt had said nothing since the game began. Everybody presumed he was deep in thought and left him to it. Kurt often coped with stressful situations with an alarming amount of silence, until the moment the group needed him to formulate a plan. Then he would whip into action. But for now there was nothing that they could do but play the torturous game.

Emily gripped the knife, shaking her head. "I can't. Ash..."

Ashley swallowed heavily. "It doesn't matter, Em. You don't have a choice. It's for Beth."

"You know I don't think that."

"Ah, but you do, Emily," The Psycho interjected. "You've said it once before, remember."

Emily did remember. She looked at Ashley imploringly. "Ash..."

Ashley locked eyes with her again. "Just do it, Em. Just get it over with." Tears leaked from her eyes as Emily readied the knife over her skin.

Emily gave Matt an angry look as she began to do as instructed.

As the blade made contact, Ashley hissed in pain.

Emily began to sob angrily too as she moved the knife along Ashley's skin.

Ashley winced at the burning, Josh holding her other hand. Blocked by Emily and Josh was Chris, who was holding his head in vicarious pain. Kurt reached across the space and rubbed soothing circles into his back. Chris reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly. Kurt saw a tear fall from his eyes as he gritted his teeth. Hannah remained on his other side, somewhat awkwardly crying as Ashley screamed.

"Almost done, Ash, it's almost done, I swear."

Emily worked as quickly as she could.

"Hey, Psycho, can someone get her a towel for the blood?"

"I suppose I'll allow it," The Psycho replied. "But don't try anything funny. Jess, you go."

Jess scrambled to go and get a washcloth from the kitchen area.

Emily manoeuvred the knife up and down as the last letter began to take shape. The 'K' burned into Ashley's skin as the blood oozed down her arm.

Matt drew his knees up to his chest and put his head in between them. He could feel a panic attack coming on. He didn't even care if Emily was watching him.

Emily drew the knife away from the sobbing girl and tossed it across the room.

"Pick it up, Emily. We might need it later..."

"FUCK YOU!" Emily yelled upwards. "FUCK YOU!"

"Please take your seat, Emily. I think we need to give Ashley a minute...any volunteers to go next?"

Predictably, nobody said anything.

"No one? Okay, I guess I'll choose. How about...our Class President in the room, Mr. Michael Munroe?"

Mike readied himself and cracked his neck. "Fine."

"Truth Or Dare, Michael?"

Mike looked at Kurt, whose eyes were blank, whose mouth was tightened shut, wondering what was going to happen.

"Kurt can't help you, Michael," The Psycho interrupted his train of thought.

The ticking sound effect started again, but Mike was too caught up in his thoughts to hear it.

"I...I don't know, I don't want to do either! I don't know what to do."

After ten seconds, a buzzer sounded.

"I'm sorry, Michael. You're out of time."

Mike whirled around to face Beth. "Wait."

The Psycho laughed. "No, don't worry. She's safe for now. It just means that I get to pick for you. And I pick _Dare_."

The colour flooded from Mike's face. He didn't even want to think about what he was going to be asked to do.

As his eyes scanned the room, he knew.

He knew what The Psycho was going to get him to do.

"Let's scale it back a little bit, shall we? Poor Ashley went through hell. How about some classic teenage dares for you all?"

Mike groaned.

"Michael, I dare you to make out with Hannah for twenty seconds."

As all eyes landed upon her, Hannah felt bad that a truly evil part of herself was glad that this was happening, that she would get to make out with Mike. But the overly good side of her, the most powerful side, reminded her what was going on, and she felt sick to her stomach.

Mike's eyes immediately landed upon Kurt, who shrugged passively.

Hannah looked to Kurt too, worriedly. Kurt smiled reassuringly at her.

Mike then, for the first time in hours, looked at Hannah Washington.

Hannah stared back at him, worry still in her eyes, but suddenly remembering why she fell for Mike Munroe in the first place. Those light brown eyes, that hard, thick jawline. And as he walked over to her, she had to focus to remember that she wasn't in Fantasy Land. She was in Hell. And this was designed to torture her. She knew she would remember that feeling of the kiss forever, and that was precisely the point.

"Stand up, Hannah. Go get what you've always wanted," The Psycho commanded.

Hannah stood up, looking at Beth for support. Beth gave her a small smile before looking at the ground once more.

Mike moved closer to Hannah.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

He reached out for her face. "Hey, this isn't your fault. I didn't choose quick enough. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for everything."

"We...we can talk later, if you want."

Mike nodded, smiling lightly.

Hannah closed her eyes as Mike leaned in.

Chris took Kurt's hand in his once again as Mike kissed Hannah.

"More passion, Munroe."

Mike winced as he kissed Hannah more deeply, parting her lips with his tongue.

Kurt knew this was the most evil thing Mike could have been asked to do, well besides doing something similar to what Emily had done. Mike would feel guilty about kissing Hannah, which would affect his budding relationship with Kurt. Mike wouldn't want to kiss Hannah, which meant that Hannah's _first kiss_ would be forever tainted. It would be with the guy she loved, but for all the wrong reasons. It was horrible, and cruel, and a sadistic part of Kurt couldn't help but be impressed by the devious nature of the game. Of course, it was completely horrendous and he would kill whoever put them up to this. But he had to keep his head and get Beth out of this.

Twenty seconds seemed to last a lifetime to both Mike and Hannah. Hannah kept telling herself that it wasn't real passion, that Mike was pretending, but her body wasn't responding to her mind.

Mike eventually pulled away from the girl, whose lips were plump and eyes glassy. He blinked quickly and exhaled, shuffling back over to his seat. Chris pulled away from Kurt and tended to Hannah, who was quietly crying once more. Beth was turning red trying not to move from her spot, the vein in her forehead bulging out prominently.

Kurt put his hand on Mike's leg. "You don't have to say anything. I might end up having to do much worse to you. Then you'd seem stupid for apologising." He smiled quickly.

"Two truths...two dares. Who's next...ah, I think we'll come back to Ashley...truth or dare, Ashley?"

"Truth," she spluttered immediately, still clutching her arm. "I won't have you making me cut up anybody else!"

The Psycho chuckled. "Emotional wounds can cut just as deep...but okay. Ashley...let's see...ah yes. You recently read somebody's diary, is that correct?"

Ashley paused. "Um...yes. Only a few pages!"

"But enough to find out some truly great secrets...I want you to confess what you know in front of the group. Tell them whose diary you read and what you learned. Stand up, just like Matthew did."

Ashley reluctantly made her way to the front of the room, dabbing some of the dripping blood from her arm. _You got this, Ash. Be brave._ "So um...I want to say that I didn't mean anything bad by reading it, I just...wanted to know something that I'd been a little bit paranoid about. I know I should've just asked but...I didn't know what to do."

"Ashley."

"Okay, okay fine. I'm sorry! I read Chris' diary."

Chris' eyes widened. "Ash..."

"I'm sorry, Chris!"

"Tell them what you read, Ashley."

Ashley gritted her teeth. "I...it was a story. About...about two bo—people who had been friends for a l-long time and...they ended up confessing their feelings for each other."

"And what were their names?"

"C-Chris...and Josh."

Only a few surprised faces turned to the boys. Josh said nothing, staring hard at Ashley. Chris buried his head in his hands. Kurt took his hand again – it seemed to calm them both down."

Ashley was openly crying now. "I'm so sorry." She staggered back to her seat.

Josh turned to her. "It's not your fault."

Chris lifted his head. "I can't believe you read my diary. That was...personal."

"I was..."

"I don't care what you wanted! There's no excuse to invade someone's privacy like that."

The Psycho chuckled once more. Everyone was growing very tired of their games, and the rumbling laughter that followed each torturous round.

"Five rounds down...I'm impressed you guys made it this far. Allegiances have been tested, arms have been cut, but everyone's alive. You can all take a deep breath. Two dares, three truths. Now it's time to change the rules slightly. I'm going to reveal the order of the next five. The catch is that you can't choose the same option as the person before you. So think wisely when you make your decision about what you might have to put someone else through. The remaining order is Christopher, Hannah, Josh, Jessica, Kurt. Christopher Hartley...truth or dare!"

Chris immediately turned to Hannah, seeing the fear that had sparked in her eyes. "Dare."

Hannah sighed. She was secretly glad, but she didn't know what Chris was going to have to do, and that scared her more than anything she would be faced with.

"Brave choice, Christopher."

"Thank you," Hannah whispered.

"Don't mention it," he smiled quickly.

"So...your Dare...let's see...I know. I'm going to give you a choice. I'm not going to tell you the Dare, but I'm giving you the option of who to do it to..."

"Just hurry up with it," Chris spat.

"Ashley or Sam?"

Chris locks eyes with Ashley for just a brief second before moving on to Sam. His heart sank in his chest. Sam nodded, swallowing heavily.

"Okay. Sam."

"Okay then," The Psycho responded. "Grab the knife."

Sam gasped.

Chris clenched his fists.

"I'm just messing with you. I think enough knife damage has been done for now. Christopher, I want you to take Sam's phone."

Sam reluctantly handed Chris her phone, unlocking it quickly. She held tightly onto a silent Jess for support.

Chris wandered back dumbly to the centre of the room. "Yeah? Now what?"

"I want you to take a moment to look through her Notes. There you'll find some songwriting, poetry, and an unfinished letter. Please take a look at the letter."

Chris' apologetic eyes met Sam's, the girl nodding slowly, giving her permission.

Chris tapped and opened the memo, huffing.

"Read it _aloud_ , Christopher."

Chris took a deep breath and read the note. " _I've been thinking...a lot about him recently. I don't mean to, but I don't think I can stop myself. When he looks my way, it feels brand new. It didn't used to be like that, but once I'd even entertained the possibility of something like that happening, it's all I can think about._

" _Part of me wonders what it would be like to ask him out – to see if he'd been thinking the same way as me. Probably not, some people can't look past their friendship to see what could be. To see what else could come from such a bond. But I have._

" _Josh, I think I'd like to go out with you. I think I—_."

Everyone paused. Sam was noticeably silent.

"That's...uh...that's where it ends."

Josh turned to Sam.

"Don't," she muttered, burying her head in Jess' shoulder. Jess gave Josh a small smile.

"Isn't this all very intriguing? Hannah, I guess it's time for your _truth_."

Hannah stood up. "I don't see what I could say that hasn't already been said tonight," she chuckled.

"I like your attitude, Hannah, but there's something you're forgetting. When Kurt walked into your room not an hour ago, you were writing in your diary, weren't you? Gosh, you all _love_ to write about your feelings, it's gross. Hannah, can you remember what you were writing about?"

Hannah nodded gently, eyes flickering to Kurt.

"Care to share with the class?"

Hannah exhaled steadily. "Guess I should just come out with it. What more harm could I possibly do? I was writing about Kurt and Mike, no surprises there. Happy?"

"Far from it," The Psycho replied. "I want you to tell Kurt and Mike, as well as everybody else, exactly what you were writing before Kurt surprised you by trying to make amends."

Kurt frowned. Hannah had been perfectly lovely during their chat.

Hannah bit her lip. "I...I'm not proud of it. I wrote about how I thought it wasn't fair, that I never really got what I wanted in my life, that I was resentful that it was never me, always K-Kurt. Kurt, I'm so sorry."

Kurt shook his head, silently urging her to continue.

"I was angry, I...I wrote some really mean stuff about you and I didn't mean any of it."

"Say it," The Psycho demanded. "Now."

"Well, from what I can r-remember...I wrote that...fuck."

"Allow me to read it for you," The Psycho said, surprising them all. It was Hannah's truth, but they guessed it didn't matter who revealed it. The damage would be done anyway, this would just streamline things. " _Kurt isn't nearly as perfect as he so clearly thinks he is. I thought his hopeless unrequited crush on my brother would take him down a notch or two, but clearly he still walks around with that same arrogant attitude about himself, thinking he can just take Mike for himself. I've known him longer, I've always been there for him. Plus I'm a girl. What chance does Kurt have with Mike or any guy for that matter? Nobody is going to want him. I think that he—._ And that's where the entry ends. Pity, I would've loved to see the conclusion."

Hannah gaped, embarrassed. "Kurt, I—."

Kurt smiled pleasantly. "It doesn't matter, sweetheart. You said what you were feeling, I can't blame you for that. God only knows what I would've said about you had it been the other way around."

Hannah sniffled. Why was Kurt being so nice about this? She basically called him unlovable and arrogant. That was her anger talking. Not her personality, she loved Kurt, she really did. "I'm so sorry."

"Well, isn't Kurt being noble? I'm bored. Time for Josh's dare."

Josh rolled his eyes. "Bring it on, fucker!"

The Psycho laughed yet again. "You're surprisingly brave for someone with a big secret."

Josh shrugged. "After what's happened tonight, I don't care."

"Well, Josh, I want you to stand up and face the room."

Josh complied with the actions given.

"Now, Josh, you want to save your sister, correct?"

"Obviously."

"Even if it meant you had to cut off a finger?"

Josh faltered. "Yes. I would do it. Who needs all ten fingers anyway?"

The Psycho laughed. "I didn't say _your_ finger. I want you to pick up the knife, and cut off someone's finger. Any person, any hand, any finger. You've got three minutes, and I want a severed finger on that table or else Beth will be dead and you won't be able to save her. But it _cannot_ be your finger."

"Josh, calm down," Beth spoke for the first time since the game began.

Josh turned to face his sister, looking into her deep eyes. "I'm doing this for you."

"I know. I'm sorry."

Josh looked around the room. "Uh...any...volunteers?"

Ashley shrugged. "I'm already a _freak_ , may as well have an odd amount of fingers to go with it."

"Ash!" Chris exclaimed.

"What, now you care?"

Josh huffed. "Guys! Ashley...think about this. Are you _seriously_ volunteering to lose a finger?"

"I...I...I don't know."

Josh shook his head. "Then no."

Kurt stood up. "I'll do it."

Mike gaped. "Kurt...you play piano."

Josh nodded furiously. "You play so beautifully, I'm not letting some sick freak fuck that up."

"So now you're playing God?" Emily argued.

"I have _three_ minutes to cut off someone's fucking _finger_ , Emily. For good, they're not getting it back. Excuse me if I'm struggling to think clearly!"

Emily shrank back into her seat, it was a good point after all.

Sam stood up. "Cut off my finger, Josh."

"Sam..."

"No, Josh. Someone needs to take one for the team and I've already caused enough hurt tonight. I'm not letting anyone else do this. I'm insisting."

"Two minutes," The Psycho reminded them.

Josh sighed. "Shit. I'm gonna ask you one more time, Sam. Are you _sure_ you want this?"

Sam nodded silently, placing her hand out on the table.

"Which one?" Josh wondered aloud.

Sam bit her lip. "Ring finger. It's my right hand, when am I gonna need it, right?" She tried to laugh, but the sound came out twisted and distorted.

Josh bent over the table and lifted the knife. "Fuck, fuck, fuck. I'm so sorry, Sam. Fuck!"

"Just do it. Someone distract me!"

Jess turned Sam's face towards her. "So I was in C-Calculus the other day and Artie Abrams was totally drooling all over his work, because I was wearing that really hot mini-skirt, so I was like "Ew, gross, perv" and he was all embarrassed and—."

Josh chose that moment to bring the knife down, hard enough to slice through the bone and sever Sam's finger from her hand. Sam squeezed Jess' hand with her free hand and let out a howl.

"FUCK!" She bellowed, breathing heavily. "Shit, motherfucker."

Sam pulled her hand away. "Someone get me something to wrap this up in!" Chris scrambled from his seat and went to find something appropriate for Sam's wound.

Josh slammed the knife down on the table next to the finger. "There? Done! Fucking psycho!"

Josh fell to his knees, head in his hands.

The booming laugh returned. "Well done, Joshua. I didn't know you had the guts. No time to linger on Sam's pain, unfortunately. It's time for Jessica's truth-telling. And you know what this is going to be, don't you Jessica?"

Jess wrinkled her face. "I've got a pretty good idea, yeah."

The Psycho clicked their tongue. "Well then, get on with it. Tell her what you've been meaning to tell her. Stand up."

Jess slipped out of her seat and looked at Kurt. He gave her a thumbs up in encouragement.

 _You got this_ , he mouthed.

"I'minlovewithSam!" She rushed, none of the syllables making sense. But she'd said it now, it would be easier to say it in the future.

"What?" Josh replied.

Jess took a deep breath. "Fuck, this is the worst timing in the history of confessions. I'm...in love with Sam. I'm bisexual."

Sam's eyes widened in surprise. "Jess, I...I had no idea."

"Only Kurt knew," Jess mumbled as she retook her seat. "I can...sit somewhere else?"

Sam shook her head. "No, no of course not. This doesn't change anything, Jess, alright? We're still us, we're still best friends. And I...fuck this hurts. Sorry...I wish I could be what you want me to be, I do. You're hot, and I'd be lucky to be with you. God, I'm bad at this."

Jess chuckled, eyes filling with tears.

"I just...don't feel the same way. I'm not into girls. I'm really sorry, Jess."

Jess nodded. "It's okay. I wasn't expecting anything. I was never going to tell you. What point would there be in saying anything, right?"

"Well, I fucking hate the situation, but I'm glad I know. You never have to keep anything from me again, okay?" Sam grasped Jess' hand again. "I love you, Jessie."

Kurt got to his feet. "Sorry girls, but I'm mad now. You're almost fucking done with this shit, Psycho! So give me my Dare and let's be done with this shit. There are eleven people in this room who are done with your games. So just end it already! What's my Dare?"

"You, Kurt, have the best Dare of all. I want you to come over to the speaker system and unplug my connection."

Kurt frowned. "But that...Beth...was this your plan all along? To get us to hurt each other to save Beth and kill Beth in the end anyway?"

The Psycho laughed. "You've all been excellent sports and I look forward to the aftermath of this game. But I would never allow you to actually _win_."

Kurt cursed. "Fuck."

Beth smiled. "It's okay, Kurt. If you don't, he'll just kill me anyway. I'd rather you guys be free from him."

Kurt approached Beth. "No. You know what, you're going to be _fine_. This isn't real, how can he kill you if he's not here? You haven't been poisoned, there are no bombs anywhere, this was all a trick."

Emily paused. "But Kurt...what if you're wrong?"

"Then Beth..." Hannah started.

Kurt ran a hand through his hair. Jess gasped. She had never seen him mess up his hair before, ever.

He paced and paced and paced, before walking up to the sound system.

"You want me to unplug you, Psycho?"

"Yes. Do it, Kurt. Be rid of me. And Beth. How confident are you that you're right?"

Kurt had a pained look in his eye. "Not at all. But if you're telling the truth, Beth was dead from the beginning."

He turned back to Beth. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'm sorry this happened to you."

Before anyone could object, Kurt pulled the plug.

A pregnant silence fell over the room as Beth winced, ready for whatever was going to happen.

But nothing came.

"I was right," Kurt whispered, relief flooding through him.

He walked back over to Beth, checking her from head to toe. "You're okay!"

Hannah and Josh rushed over to her, hugging her and crying.

Mike stood warily. "I have a feeling this isn't the end. Why would he just let us off the hook like that?"

Matt grimaced and got to his feet, too. "Well, I don't know if you've noticed, Mike, but none of us are exactly any better off than we were before the game."

"Some of us lost a finger!" Sam chimed in.

Kurt gasped as he looked around the room. "That was the endgame. Now we have to deal with what's left."

Everyone looked around at each other, some avoiding awkward glances.

Kurt and Matt were right.

The ten teenagers who played the game were left with ruined relationships, unveiled secrets, and a cabin full of angst.

Then the shouting began.


	6. The Aftermath

Chapter 6 – The Aftermath

* * *

Kurt stood blankly in the middle of the chaos as voices soared over his head and behind his back.

Jess was in a furious debate with Hannah, presumably over the things Hannah had said about Kurt. Jess was fiercely protective of her best friend and, had Josh not been Hannah's sister, she figured the other boy would be right by her side yelling too. To her credit, Hannah was sticking up for herself quite well. She had apologised and if Kurt wasn't mad at her, then why should Jess be? Jess conceded that, but insisted that Hannah needed to be put in her place and not feel so entitled about the things that she wanted.

Across the room, Emily and Matt were in the midst of a very heated argument. Emily was cussing him out for not telling her about his feelings for Sam, while Matt was sheepishly insisted that it didn't matter because they were together now and he no longer felt anything for Sam. Emily was screaming that it wasn't the point, that Matt should have been upfront with her when she asked him a direct question about his feelings in the past on that first date. Nobody wanted to even think about getting in the middle of that.

Chris, Josh, and Ashley were in their own corner. Chris was still mad at Ashley for invading his privacy, while she insisted that she had been through enough tonight and that she didn't need his anger to flare up at her as well. Josh was trying to mediate the situation, but his attempts at being calm were being drowned out by the loud voices of Jess and Emily.

Sam and Mike were grilling Beth about her time away from the cabin and what had happened to her. Beth refused to tell them anything, which had made Sam uncharacteristically mad. She held up her missing finger wound and claimed that she deserved to know why they had been trapped in there to play the game, causing her to lose a _finger_. Beth continued to clam up, so Mike tried to play it calm, which hadn't worked either. They were becoming increasingly angry at her.

Nobody, wrapped in their own issues, noticed Kurt standing idly by while it all happened.

He took a deep breath.

"EVERYBODY SHUT THE FUCK UP!" He roared, louder than anyone.

And everyone stopped in their tracks.

Kurt never yelled, not even when being yelled at himself. So they knew that when he did, it was time to buck up and pay attention to what he had to say. They knew Kurt was one of the more rational members of the group and, even though he had been slighted during the game, he wasn't angry at anyone, so that counted for something.

"Thank you! Okay, it's been one shit storm of a night and tempers are sky high right now. Yelling is going to do nobody any good. But I do realise we need to sort our shit out. So we do it in a healthy way, because this friendship group means the world to me and it needs to stay intact. Alright?"

Everyone nodded, blushing at their high tempers.

"Okay. So we're going to go in order of the damn game. Each person can choose to air any grievances the game might have caused, either with the group or in private. But we _cannot_ shout and scream about it. That's just what that psycho wants. So we're going to start with Sam. Is there anything you want to say?"

Sam shuffled in her seat. "I wanted to know how we ended up playing the game in the first place."

Everyone turned to Beth.

Kurt nodded. "I was wondering that, too. Beth...if you don't mind telling us. I think you owe us that much at least."

Beth rocked back and forth in her seat. "I was headed to our bathroom. I saw that the window was open so I went to close it, and I looked around to see if anything had gotten in. Then someone...g-grabbed me and pulled out into the snow. I tried to fight him off but he was too strong. He pulled me away and gave me a set of instructions.

"He told me that I was supposed to plug the flash drive into the laptop which would set up the live audio and video feed."

"So you just...did it?" Emily raised her arms.

Beth bit her lip. "I didn't _want_ to, Em! He s-said he'd hurt Hannah if I didn't. I couldn't let that happen."

"So you just put the rest of us in danger?" Emily raised her voice a little bit.

"Emily," Kurt reminded her calmly. "Civil voices, please."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Fine. I understand but I'm not happy about it."

Beth nodded. "I hate that I had to do it. I'm so sorry everyone, I didn't want it to end up like this."

Nobody interjected.

"He didn't say anything about me being in danger, though. I didn't know until it started what might happen."

Hannah smiled. "You're okay now, Beth. Nothing else is going to happen to you."

Kurt smiled. "You're right. Sam, are you satisfied?"

Sam nodded her affirmation.

"Okay. Matt, you're up."

Matt leaned forward. "I'd like to talk to Emily in private, if that's okay?"

Kurt shrugged. "Of course. Do you need a mediator?"

Emily grinned. "No. I got this."

"Play nice, Em," he warned.

Emily did a small curtsey. "When do I not?"

Kurt snorted. "Pretty much exclusively."

Emily and Matt walked across the floor into the other room.

Emily closed the door and leaned against it. "So this is a mess."

"You're telling me," Matt nodded. "You mind if I talk first?"

Emily gestured for him to start.

"I'm not going to pretend like Sam's answer didn't bother me, because I did. I'm not hard like you, Em. I care about what people think and I want people to like me. I know I'm not the best looking in the group, or the smartest, or most talented, but I know I'm a _good guy_. It just hurts when you know you're on the outside. If we were on a sinking ship, I'd probably volunteer to stay behind, but when someone else makes that decision for you and _means_ it, it's not a nice thing to hear about yourself.

"I'm going to be really honest with you, because you deserve it. I'm incredibly insecure, Em. It's irrational, but I need the validation of my friends that I'm doing good, because I'm so hard on myself that I can't tell if I'm doing a good job or completely fucking the whole thing up. Here's the part where you tell me how I'm doing."

Emily chuckled. "I'm with you so far."

He hopped up onto the counter and she walked between his legs.

"Full disclosure. I did like Sam a while back, for quite a long time. But I want you to know that it _doesn't_ change a single thing about us in my book. If I'd known you the way I do now, Sam wouldn't even have been in the picture. You're it for me, Em. I don't want anyone else. For what it's worth, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I should've, but I didn't want to mess things up when they were only just beginning, you know?"

Emily smiled, kissing him briefly, wrapping her arms around his back. "Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me all of that. It's just that...what you said struck a nerve."

She took a deep breath. "Sam is the only person I've ever been jealous of. Me and her are pretty similar people, but she's the one everyone likes. I don't _need_ to be liked, but it'd be nice. I'm not going to stop being myself to do it, though, I'm too proud. It just sucks. Sam is gorgeous, smart, athletic, popular, but above all she's a genuinely great person. I'm cold and sarcastic, because that's my way of coping with the world. When you don't show that you care, people can't hurt you as easily."

Matt used the pad of this thumb to wipe away a tear. She smiled vulnerably.

"I shouldn't have been so hard on you. If it was anyone else, I wouldn't have been. Hell, we've all liked people in the past. It doesn't affect us now, you're right. I just took it too personally because it's _Sam_. When she said what she said about you, I was pissed. Because where did she get off condemning you to death and saving everyone else? You're the best of us, Matty. You've always been the best of us. You're _good_ , you're smart, you're really fucking hot."

Matt chuckled, blushing.

"You're never on the outside with me. Or the rest of the group for that matter. We love you, and we wouldn't have you any other way than being completely yourself."

Matt grinned, kissing her again. "I'm impressed."

Emily smirked. "That I didn't even raise my voice once?"

"Well, yeah."

"If I'd have gone first, I would have. But what you said made a lot of sense to me. I don't identify, but I can recognise it. I'm sorry you feel like that. I know I can be tough to be with, but I'm being honest when I say that I'm all in. I don't want anyone else, either."

As they reconciled their differences and went back into the living room hand in hand, everyone cooed and clucked at their reunion.

"Any oohs or ahs and I'm punching each and every one of you in the groin."

Nobody made a sound.

"We all good here?" Kurt smiled knowingly, meeting Emily's eyes.

Emily grinned. "Yeah. We're great. And nobody yelled."

The atmosphere in the room was considerably calmer than before. It was clear that the group were being methodical, waiting for Emily and Matt until they continued with the process.

"Okay, I still need to do this properly, though. Emily, do you have any other grievances you wish to air?"

Emily looked around the room. "Nothing that someone else isn't going to cover."

Kurt frowned, but let it go. "Okay. I guess we're onto...Mike."

Mike kissed Kurt's head. "I'm good. I think you're going to cover mine anyway."

Hannah looked terrified, but nobody was looking at her. She knew that Kurt would probably want to grill her about what she had written. And she didn't blame him, she just didn't know how to properly explain herself.

"Ash?"

She nodded. "Chris...can we?"

Chris folded his arms. "I think it's fair that since you invaded my privacy, you aren't entitled to any of your own in this situation."

Kurt winced. Harsh, but not unfair. He didn't think that Chris had that in him, especially where Ashley was concerned. Then again, what she had revealed had been extremely personal, something that Kurt was sure he'd want to talk about.

Ashley nodded. "I guess that's fair. You have to believe me when I say that I wasn't snooping, okay? Well...I was, but I wasn't being malicious. I was...it was the day that we hung out last month, at the movies. We got dinner and played video games at your place. I was thinking about...about kissing you."

Chris looked shocked.

"I wanted to know if I was going to make a fool out of myself. I called Josh but he didn't pick up, and I saw your diary just _sitting_ there and I needed to know. If you written something about how you felt about me, then maybe I could figure out if what I was doing was right. If you hadn't, then I'd leave it alone. I didn't go looking for...that. I _promise_ , I would never do that. You know me, Chris. You know me better than to think that I'd want to go behind your back like that. I know I did, but I couldn't risk messing this up. Because I really like you."

The guilt was clear on Chris' face, he had been harsher to her than she deserved, and now everyone knew about her feelings. He guessed that meant they were sort of on level pegging right now.

"Can we...can we talk about it later?" Ashley suggested.

Chris nodded. "Yeah, I think we should. I'm sorry, I had no idea."

Emily wasn't sure that was entirely true, but she held her tongue. It wasn't her place to say anything.

Kurt exhaled. "Okay. That was good. Chris, I don't suppose you want to say anything."

Chris faltered. "Uh...not right now. I'm still processing. I'll say what I need to say later."

Kurt nodded. It was as he had expecting. "That's fair enough. Hannah, your turn."

"Oh, Kurt I'm so sorry," she blurted, turning to face him. "I never meant to say any of those things to you! I was angry and upset, and I wasn't thinking clearly about anything. You have to forgive you, you know how much you mean to me."

Kurt's jaw hardened. "Is that everything?"

Sam winced. She knew that look. Hannah was _not_ good in his book. And she knew that the girl was going to find that out in a matter of minutes.

Hannah nodded. "I don't know what else I could say that would help right now."

"Smart," Kurt whispered, only Mike able to hear him. "Josh, the floor's yours."

Josh stood up. "Chris. Ashley. Come with me."

He didn't look at them, instead led the way to one of the private rooms upstairs. The rest of the group sat in silence, their minds buzzing with the events of the night.

Josh stepped back and allowed them to enter the room. He stuffed the key back into his pocket and locked the door. "We're not leaving this room until we figure this out. I'm going to be really, really blunt and really honest here. We all like each other."

Chris frowned, sharing a confused glance with Ashley. "We...what? We who?"

"We _us_ , Chris."

Ashley bit her lip. "I thought...I thought it was just me."

Chris took a seat. "I don't know what's going on."

Josh cleared his throat. "You like Ashley, right?"

Chris nodded, not meeting her eyes.

"You like me too, right?"

Chris looked up, startled, eyes filling with tears. "Yeah, man."

Josh nodded. "Good. Well, I like you too...and I like Ash."

Ashley smiled, taking both of their hands. "I like you both, too. I didn't know until recently, and it was all pretty confusing but I can't deny it."

Chris stood up. "So we...what do we do?"

Josh shrugged. "We could meet up for regular threesomes."

Chris gaped. So did Ashley.

"I'm _kidding_. Look, shit like this isn't easily done. Relationships are tricky enough with two people but, with three, it's even worse. There's jealousy and bitterness and resentment. And there's a chance someone could lose their feelings for one of the other two.

" _But_ we can't help what we feel. We're _us_. So I think we should try and make something of this."

"A polyamory?" Chris whispered. "You think we could?"

"Only if you both want this. And _really_ want this. We have to on the same page here. Either we're all in or we're all out."

"I'm in," Chris whispered tenderly.

Ashley nodded. "I...I'm in too."

Josh grinned. "I've wanted you both for so long now."

He could tell just from the gazes he got in return that the other two were thinking the exact same thing.

"So that's it? We just...go from here?"

Josh tilted his head, frowning. "I think we should mark the occasion." He turned to Ashley, holding out his hand. She took it and he pulled her in close, wrapping his arms around her waist. He leaned in slowly and caught her lips in his. She squeezed her eyes shut and sank into his embrace.

"Holy _shit_ ," Chris breathed.

Josh pulled away from the kiss and winked. "You're up, pilgrim."

Ashley put her hand on Chris' chest. Chris cupped her face in his hands and kissed her squarely on the mouth. It wasn't as intense as her kiss with Josh, but she felt the quiet passion behind the gesture. She knew that Chris was more the strong and silent type than Josh, and it was something she greatly appreciated about the two of them. That they were so different, but so similar at the same time.

Ashley leaned into the kiss quickly before breaking it, wanting to end the moment on a perfect note.

She blinked quickly, disoriented from the two kisses.

Josh licked his lips. "Come here," he growled, pulling Chris close to him, pressing their lips together.

Chris used his height to take control of the kiss from Josh, wrapping his arms around Josh's back to support him. Chris supposed this might feel weird, kissing his best friend, but it felt absolutely right, like he should've been doing it this whole time and he'd been missing out for years.

Josh grunted into the kiss and tangled his hands in Chris' hair.

Ashley knew that the two boys together would clash physically, their different temperaments making for something truly interesting to watch. Something stirred inside her and she knew that she was doing the right thing, heading down the right path.

As Josh and Chris pulled away from each other, panting, the three looked at each other, smiles spreading slowly across their faces.

"So that was new."

Chris nodded breathlessly. "Yeah. And awesome."

Ashley held out her hands and the boys took them. _Her_ boys? That would certainly take some getting used to.

"Guess we should go and face the music," Josh wiggled his eyebrows as they decided to leave the room.

The three left the room and re-entered the living room area, where everybody was waiting patiently once more for their return.

"You guys okay?" Mike wondered as they retook their seats, giving sly looks to each other.

"Oh yeah, we're great." Chris nodded, grinning.

Kurt gaped. "You...you finally did it?"

Josh nodded back at him.

"Oh my god."

"Did what?"

Josh looked around to the others for confirmation. They nodded.

"Well...Chris, Ash, and I are dating."

Everyone looked shocked, aside from Kurt who knew this would be happening at some point. The shock was followed by congratulations from all around the room.

Josh stopped for a second. "Uh, Kurt, I might need to go again."

Kurt was about to inquire as to why, but he saw the look on Sam's face and stopped. "That's fine."

Sam shook her head. "No, it's okay. I know I already used my turn but I just want to say that I don't mind. I was confused about stuff, it happens. I'm really happy for you guys, truly I am. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. As long as I find someone who doesn't mind dating a girl with nine fingers."

The group chuckled lightly before Kurt turned to Jess.

"You got anything else?"

Jess tightened her mouth and shook her head.

"Right. Hannah, do you want to do this here or do you want to take this somewhere else?"

Hannah shuffled. She knew that Kurt was going to bitch her out one way or another, the least she could do was earn his respect by not hiding away from the consequences of what she had done. "Here's fine."

Kurt was shocked by her resilience, and slightly impressed. But he was still mad at her. "I just want to know what I did wrong."

"Kurt, you—."

Kurt's eyes narrowed. "Do not interrupt me right now."

Hannah bowed her head.

Beth knew that she was supposed to just let Kurt say what he needed to say, and rightly so, but she couldn't help but wanting to shield her sister from the hurt he was going to deliver.

"I would like to know what I did that was so wrong to you other than follow my own heart. I completely acknowledge your feelings, I know how rough it is to see something like that, especially when you've convinced yourself you _deserve_ something that somebody else has, believe me I know that.

"But that doesn't give you the right to be _cruel_. Yes, we all say things in the heat of the moment but you didn't. You chose to write it all down in ink, to vent about the problem rather than coming to me and telling me how you felt. If I hadn't interrupted your writing, would you have talked to me about it at all?"

Hannah wisely said nothing.

"No, you wouldn't have. Because I might be a bitch, but you're petty, Hannah. You chose to write those things about me rather than coming to me and talking it through. Or even talking to Mike, which granted would've been hard, but it would've been more helpful."

Hannah nodded.

"How much of that did you mean? And be honest with me. You must've meant some of it deep down or else you wouldn't have taken the time to write it. And don't hold back, they're all things I've thought about myself at one point or another."

Mike was unsurprised but nonetheless impressed at how composed Kurt was being, when Mike knew that he was breaking apart inside. What Hannah had written had deeply affected him, having confirmed something he always thought about himself.

"None of it. Kurt, you have to believe me. I love you, you know that."

Kurt shrugged. "So you just wrote a bunch of lies about me? Forgive me if I don't believe you. We can talk about this some other time, for now I just want to forget the whole thing even happened. Thank you, everyone, for indulging me in that. I hope it's helped to clear the air a little bit."

Kurt slipped off his seat and headed upstairs to his room, Mike hot on his heels. Usually, Kurt would have rebuffed the advance, but he felt like he needed some comfort right now.

Hannah burst into tears, burying her face into Beth's lap. Beth stroked her hair, knowing that Kurt was absolutely right, and he didn't even insult her back. He just aired his grievance, and said what was on his mind. She couldn't wrong him for that. It was the mature thing to have done.

Everyone stood up awkwardly and returned to their rooms, Josh noticeably slipping into step with Chris and Ashley to figure out their rooming situation.

As Kurt entered his room, Mike locking the door behind them, he turned around with a crestfallen look on his face.

"Was she right?"

Mike sighed, Kurt finally allowing himself to feel everything that Hannah had said all at once, having had to hold himself together earlier for the sake of the group. "No, Kurt, no she wasn't right."

"It's not like I haven't considered myself arrogant and unworthy of love. I just didn't think my friends thought that way about me."

Mike chewed his lip. "Do you want the truth?"

"Always."

"You're the best person we know."

Kurt chuckled. "You said the _truth_ , Michael."

Mike nodded solemnly. "You are the greatest person we've ever met. That's why you fit in this group so easily. You brought us closer together. That being said you also, through no fault of your own, bring out the things we don't like about ourselves."

Kurt frowned. "I don't follow."

Mike thought of an example. "Chris compensates for his anxiety with humour, right?"

Kurt nodded.

"Well you present yourself as the most confident person we know, and you're hilarious at the same time. I'm not saying Chris feels that way about you, but you get what I'm saying right?"

"Yeah, I think I do. But I'm just being myself, I don't mean to make anyone feel bad about themselves."

Mike kissed his nose, making Kurt giggle softly. "Baby, I know. It's our problem to deal with, not yours."

"I hate that I do this. I hold it all together until I can allow the dam to break and I feel _everything_. Even things I know I shouldn't."

"Like what?"

"Well, for instance, I'm feeling guilty because we kissed and we're...trying something. I feel guilty because I know how deeply Hannah feels about you."

Mike sighed. "You can't help that."

"Like I said, I know I shouldn't feel that, because it's not my fault. It's not yours, either, it's just how it goes."

A second of silence ticked by.

Kurt smiled softly. "I'm really glad you kissed me."

Mike grinned, blushing. "I'm glad you wanted me to."

"Okay, I know you said you didn't know when people are into you, but _come on_ , Michael. I wasn't exactly being subtle."

He smirked. "How long?"

"Oh, Mike, I've been drawn to you ever since we met. Man, that seems like so long ago now."

"Seven years," Mike whispered. "You remember how we met?"

"You know that I do."

"You were so cute asking for directions. I remember you had a smattering of freckles right...here." Mike punctuated his point by ghosting his fingers along Kurt's skin.

"It was a warm spring," Kurt remembered. "You were the first person I saw and you pretty much set the bar for how things were going to go."

"What about Josh?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Josh entertained me. Josh gave me the time of day, unlike _someone_ who wouldn't leave Jess alone on the playground."

"So you moved on to Josh because you thought you couldn't have me?"

Kurt smirked. "I was a devious nine year old."

Mike chuckled. "Well, you've got me now, Kurt Hummel."

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "So I do."

Mike winked. "Well, what are you going to do with me?"


End file.
